TRANSPORT

Bus Services

John Butterfill: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport when he plans to regulate audio-visual information systems on local bus services, as set out in the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000.

Sadiq Khan: Widespread implementation of audio visual systems presents some significant technological challenges. The Department for Transport is conducting research to assess whether these challenges can be overcome before it considers whether to make amendments to the Public Service Vehicles Accessibility Regulations 2000 to include a requirement for such systems to be fitted to buses. The research has brought together a cross-section of stakeholders, including Guide Dogs, Royal National Institute of Blind People and Royal National Institute for Deaf People. The project is scheduled to report in summer 2010.

Bus Services: Concessions

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport what recent discussions his Department has had with  (a) Transport for London,  (b) local authorities in England and  (c) other transport authorities on the time taken to process (i) applications for and (ii) renewals of concessionary travel passes to those aged over 60 years; and if he will make a statement.

Sadiq Khan: The Department for Transport is not responsible for issuing passes and so does not hold information on the time taken for Travel Concession Authorities (TCAs) to process applications and renewals of concessionary travel passes. The Department has not had any recent discussions with Transport for London, local authorities in England or other TCAs on this issue.
	TCAs are responsible for issuing concessionary travel passes to their residents. The maximum life of a pass is five years from the date of issue but there is no recommended minimum life. TCAs are therefore free to set the expiry dates, and renewal arrangements.
	All English concessionary travel passes must now conform to a standard design and be ITSO smartcards. London was given until 1 April 2010 to meet these requirements which is why they have recently renewed all of the Freedom Passes in the capital.
	The Department would expect TCAs to process routine applications for concessionary travel passes within a reasonable time frame although it is understandable that a bulk reissue of all passes may take slightly longer.

Railways: Construction

David Lidington: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport through which parliamentary constituencies  (a) in the present Parliament and  (b) in the next Parliament the Government's preferred route for High Speed Two will pass.

Chris Mole: holding answer 30 March 2010
	HS2 Ltd.'s preferred route option passes through the following parliamentary constituencies in force in the present Parliament:
	Aylesbury
	Banbury
	Beaconsfield
	Birmingham Erdington
	Birmingham Hodge Hill
	Birmingham Ladywood
	Brent East
	Brent South
	Buckingham
	Chesham and Amersham
	Daventry
	Ealing, Acton and Shepherds Bush
	Ealing North
	Holborn and St. Pancras
	Hampstead and Highgate
	Lichfield
	Meriden
	North Warwickshire
	Regents Park and Kensington North
	Rugby and Kenilworth
	Ruislip Northwood
	South West Hertfordshire
	Stratford-upon-Avon
	Sutton Coldfield
	Tamworth
	Warwick and Leamington.
	HS2 Ltd.'s preferred route option passes through the following parliamentary constituencies that will come into force in the next Parliament:
	Aylesbury
	Banbury
	Beaconsfield
	Birmingham, Erdington
	Birmingham, Hodge Hill
	Birmingham, Ladywood
	Brent North
	Buckingham
	Chesham and Amersham
	Ealing Central and Acton
	Ealing North
	Hammersmith
	Hampstead and Kilburn
	Holborn and St. Pancras
	Kenilworth and Southam
	Kensington
	Lichfield
	Meriden
	North Warwickshire
	Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner
	South Northamptonshire
	South West Hertfordshire
	Sutton Coldfield
	Tamworth
	Uxbridge and South Ruislip
	Westminster North.

Roads

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport if he will bring forward proposals to establish  (a) standards and  (b) targets to encourage the adoption of unadopted alleyways; and if he will make a statement.

Sadiq Khan: Under the Highways Act 1980, local highway authorities may adopt public rights of way that they are not currently responsible for maintaining. Such rights of way may include some types of alleyway or other local access routes. It is for individual authorities to decide whether they wish to adopt an alleyway or not, taking account of local priorities and standards.
	The Government have no plans to set national standards or targets for the adoption of unadopted alleyways or other rights of way, as we believe this remains a matter for local consideration and decision.

Roads

David Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Transport under what legislation a local authority can adopt an alleyway; and if he will make a statement.

Sadiq Khan: Under the Highways Act 1980, local highway authorities may adopt public rights of way that they are not currently responsible for maintaining. Such rights of way may include some types of alleyway or other local access routes. It is for individual authorities to decide whether they wish to adopt an alleyway or not, taking account of local priorities and standards.

WOMEN AND EQUALITY

Equality and Human Rights Commission

Bob Neill: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality if she will place in the Library a copy of the handbook for staff of the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

Maria Eagle: The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) is independent and manages its own affairs; the following is based on information it has provided.
	The Commission is in the later stages of developing a full range of human resource policies. The policy is undergoing final consultation with the trade unions and is expected to be completed at the end of April 2010. Copies will be placed in the Library once finalised.

JUSTICE

Departmental Pay

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how much has been paid in reimbursable expenses to special advisers in his Department since April 2008.

Jack Straw: Since 1 April 2008 a total of £1,102.65 has been claimed in reimbursable expenses by the Department's special advisers.

Magistrates: Age

Jacqui Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice for what reasons upper age limits for magistrates are in place.

Michael Wills: Magistrates retire on reaching the age of 70, as this is the statutory retirement age for judicial office holders.
	It is vital the magistrates reflect the diverse communities they serve. Over 80 per cent. of magistrates are over 50 and the average age is 57. The contribution of magistrates of all ages is invaluable. However, increasing the retirement age for magistrates would take them out of line with other judicial offices and hinder work to redress the age imbalance by reducing the number of available vacancies.

Magistrates: Age

Jacqui Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice whether he has made a recent assessment of the merits of  (a) appointing magistrates over the age of 65 and  (b) employing magistrates over the age of 70 years.

Michael Wills: No recent assessment has been made on the merits of appointing magistrates over the age of 65 or employing magistrates over the age of 70 and there are no plans to undertake one for the reasons set out below. Magistrates retire on reaching the age of 70 as this is the statutory retirement age for judicial office holders.
	Magistrates sit in a part-time capacity and generally have little previous experience of the court system, so will require training, mentoring and the opportunity to gain experience. The Lord Chancellor expects that part-time magistrates will be able to sit for at least five years before retirement. He will, therefore, not normally appoint anyone over the age of 65.
	It is vital the magistrates reflect the diverse communities they serve. Over 80 per cent. of magistrates are over 50 and the average age is 57. The contribution of magistrates of all ages is invaluable. However, increasing the retirement age of magistrates, as set out in statute under Section 13 of the Courts Act 2003, would take them out of line with other judicial offices and hinder work to redress the age imbalance by reducing the number of available vacancies.

Prisoners: Ethnic Groups

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice how many prisoners there were of each ethnicity in each  (a) prison and  (b) young offender institution in England and Wales as at 1 March 2010.

Maria Eagle: The following table shows the numbers of prisoners by each ethnicity in all prison establishments including young offender institutions, which are indicated, in England and Wales as at 30 June 2009 (latest published figures).
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
	
		
			  Prison population of England and Wales by ethnic group as at 30 June 2009 
			   White  Mixed  Asian or Asian British  Black or Black British  Chinese or Other  Not stated  Unrecorde d  1991 census codes  Total 
			 All 60,770 2,852 6,011 12,017 1,412 159 14 219 83,454 
			 Altcourse 1,160 21 58 49 18 2 0 6 1,314 
			 Askham Grange 101 4 9 6 2 0 0 0 122 
			 Acklington 890 9 27 10 4 0 0 0 940 
			 Albany 461 6 16 68 0 1 1 1 554 
			 Ashfield(1) 239 30 16 50 0 1 0 2 338 
			 Ashwell 141 4 26 24 4 0 0 0 200 
			 Aylesbury(1) 209 34 29 154 4 1 0 1 433 
			 Belmarsh 508 36 73 252 25 0 0 3 897 
			 Buckley Hall 304 7 34 30 1 1 0 0 377 
			 Blundeston 303 22 42 139 6 1 0 1 514 
			 Bedford 309 29 48 70 5 0 0 0 461 
			 Blantyre House 86 1 2 25 2 1 0 1 118 
			 Bristol 502 19 16 56 11 1 0 2 607 
			 Birmingham 908 68 181 263 21 2 0 1 1,444 
			 Bullingdon 769 47 90 147 21 3 0 4 1,081 
			 Brinsford(1) 340 32 67 77 5 0 0 0 521 
			 Bullwood Hall 51 4 49 73 52 0 0 0 229 
			 Brixton 346 30 71 331 13 0 0 1 792 
			 Bronzefield 308 20 13 80 16 2 0 0 439 
			 Chelmsford 497 22 48 113 11 0 0 1 692 
			 Cardiff 705 24 33 31 17 5 0 5 819 
			 Camp Hill 371 22 32 133 7 1 0 0 566 
			 Cookham Wood(1) 63 4 0 18 1 0 0 0 86 
			 Coldingley 317 17 27 138 4 3 0 0 506 
			 Castington(1) 343 5 6 8 6 0 0 3 371 
			 Channings Wood 643 11 15 51 2 0 0 0 722 
			 Canterbury 84 6 55 96 53 0 0 0 295 
			 Dartmoor 526 15 18 56 2 3 0 0 620 
			 Dovegate 590 29 67 153 6 3 0 0 848 
			 Drake Hall 181 12 5 57 6 0 0 0 261 
			 Durham 863 8 17 19 47 0 0 4 958 
			 Doncaster 900 21 68 74 16 2 0 22 1,103 
			 Dorchester 196 3 6 15 3 0 0 3 226 
			 Deerbolt(1) 395 11 14 11 0 0 0 1 431 
			 Dover 22 0 78 130 80 0 0 0 310 
			 Downview 176 20 16 115 10 3 0 0 340 
			 Erlestoke 364 13 17 70 2 1 0 1 468 
			 Sheppey Cluster (Standford Hill) 304 14 33 86 8 2 0 4 450 
			 East Sutton Park 43 7 3 31 4 0 0 0 88 
			 Everthorpe 582 14 48 28 1 0 0 1 674 
			 Eastwood Park 250 17 14 27 10 0 0 0 317 
			 Exeter 502 6 5 15 0 1 0 3 531 
			 Sheppey Cluster (Elmley) 788 21 38 97 8 1 0 1 954 
			 Forest Bank 911 25 110 87 10 0 0 1 1,144 
			 Ford 355 15 51 102 4 1 0 1 529 
			 Foston Hall 190 8 6 11 2 0 0 0 217 
			 Frankland 627 19 23 54 7 4 0 0 734 
			 Feltham(1) 188 75 61 322 22 7 0 5 680 
			 Full Sutton 421 26 41 75 3 11 0 0 577 
			 Featherstone 470 28 77 103 4 0 0 0 682 
			 Garth 679 19 58 52 9 0 0 0 817 
			 Gloucester 238 7 12 24 2 0 0 4 287 
			 Guys Marsh 435 22 17 95 4 0 0 1 575 
			 Grendon/Spring Hill 368 27 50 68 0 2 0 0 516 
			 Glen Parva(1) 576 69 39 95 10 1 0 4 793 
			 Gartree 513 16 54 80 11 3 0 1 678 
			 Hollesley Bay 238 9 17 67 4 0 0 0 334 
			 Huntercombe(1) 111 26 26 93 3 0 0 1 260 
			 Moorland Open 185 9 31 13 3 0 0 0 241 
			 Hewell 998 39 121 165 20 1 0 0 1,344 
			 Holme House 884 7 29 19 7 0 0 2 948 
			 Hindley(1) 250 12 12 10 0 0 0 5 289 
			 Hull 934 14 33 18 13 0 0 6 1,018 
			 High Down 659 36 75 278 17 1 0 6 1,073 
			 Highpoint 514 38 79 276 18 3 0 1 930 
			 Haslar 31 4 49 49 18 1 0 0 151 
			 Haverigg 558 10 41 18 2 1 0 0 629 
			 Holloway 259 24 14 106 23 0 0 2 428 
			 Kirkham 489 14 43 19 1 1 0 1 568 
			 Kennet 321 3 1 10 1 0 0 0 336 
			 Kirklevington Grange 216 4 40 9 1 0 0 0 270 
			 Lancaster 208 2 14 5 0 0 0 0 228 
			 Leicester 240 12 62 33 7 0 0 2 357 
			 Leeds 897 38 131 58 22 1 9 1 1,157 
			 Lancaster Farms(1) 408 29 20 29 1 0 0 6 493 
			 Lowdham Grange 445 32 69 122 15 2 0 0 685 
			 Lindholme 736 38 144 159 35 2 0 0 1,114 
			 Lincoln 609 8 8 24 18 0 0 2 670 
			 Long Lartin 327 23 69 108 6 3 0 1 537 
			 Latchmere House 87 12 23 68 3 0 0 0 193 
			 Low Newton 294 3 1 9 4 0 0 0 311 
			 Liverpool 1,101 25 82 92 35 0 0 2 1,337 
			 Littlehey 526 27 52 97 6 3 0 0 711 
			 Lewes 567 11 17 63 5 0 0 1 664 
			 Leyhill 387 12 37 44 7 0 0 5 492 
			 Moorland Closed 599 37 53 73 5 3 0 0 771 
			 Morton Hall 132 18 8 154 16 1 0 0 328 
			 Manchester 916 38 120 123 18 1 0 10 1,226 
			 Maidstone 409 8 35 125 9 2 0 1 590 
			 Mount (The) 343 46 87 257 24 6 0 0 763 
			 Edmunds Hill 215 14 42 87 11 0 0 0 369 
			 New Hall 326 9 8 14 13 0 0 0 370 
			 Nottingham 393 20 48 69 9 1 0 6 545 
			 Northallerton(1) 207 8 11 5 1 0 0 0 232 
			 North Sea Camp 250 10 24 18 2 0 0 0 303 
			 Norwich 410 8 17 56 8 0 1 2 502 
			 Onley 491 39 61 96 2 3 0 0 692 
			 Peterborough 740 33 50 101 25 1 0 1 950 
			 Portland(1) 316 35 29 161 7 1 0 3 553 
			 Parkhurst 346 16 31 86 5 6 0 2 491 
			 Preston 659 9 57 11 7 0 0 3 746 
			 Parc 1,040 27 29 56 9 1 0 13 1,175 
			 Kingston (Portsmouth) 139 7 12 16 1 0 0 0 175 
			 Pentonville 507 47 146 365 34 0 1 7 1,105 
			 Rochester(1) 340 40 49 210 9 0 0 0 647 
			 Reading(1) 188 17 14 15 6 0 0 2 242 
			 Rye Hill 406 24 59 153 8 2 0 1 654 
			 Ranby 749 37 108 149 10 0 0 1 1,054 
			 Risley 875 24 90 78 11 1 0 1 1,080 
			 Send 209 8 12 42 7 0 0 0 278 
			 Stafford 572 23 73 58 6 3 0 0 735 
			 Stoke Heath(1) 460 28 40 50 1 1 0 0 580 
			 Stocken 617 33 63 85 8 1 0 0 807 
			 Sheppey Cluster (Swaleside) 463 29 74 246 9 3 0 2 826 
			 Shepton Mallet 167 1 1 17 1 1 0 0 188 
			 Swinfen Hall(1) 406 56 43 105 3 1 0 1 616 
			 Styal 381 8 12 28 19 1 0 1 450 
			 Sudbury 379 21 81 85 2 3 0 0 570 
			 Swansea 368 5 11 10 3 0 0 1 398 
			 Shrewsbury 250 2 14 19 5 0 0 0 290 
			 Thorn Cross(1) 243 13 29 12 1 0 0 3 301 
			 Usk/Prescoed 392 3 9 20 2 1 0 0 426 
			 Verne (The) 235 11 39 287 17 0 0 0 589 
			 Wellingborough 369 28 47 172 8 3 0 0 628 
			 Winchester 588 21 24 40 14 0 1 1 689 
			 Wakefield 588 23 40 70 6 9 0 0 735 
			 Wealstun 394 20 64 37 2 1 0 0 517 
			 Woodhill 581 46 55 104 14 1 1 8 809 
			 Warren Hill(1) 125 13 9 40 2 0 0 0 188 
			 Wayland 703 39 50 189 18 0 0 1 1,000 
			 Wymott 979 18 70 53 6 1 0 0 1,127 
			 Werrington(1) 93 14 10 12 1 0 0 0 130 
			 Wolds 338 11 18 20 0 0 0 0 388 
			 Whitemoor 231 26 46 129 8 3 0 1 444 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 606 62 191 399 30 1 1 3 1,293 
			 Whatton 730 6 54 45 3 2 0 0 840 
			 Wandsworth 947 58 158 435 64 6 0 7 1,675 
			 Wetherby(1) 299 24 15 14 5 0 0 3 360 
			 (1) Establishments which serve as Young Offender Institutions

CABINET OFFICE

10 Downing Street

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many times  (a) Mr Derek Draper and  (b) Mr Charlie Whelan has visited the Cabinet Office/Downing Street complex since October 2009.

Tessa Jowell: I have nothing further to add to the answer I gave to my right hon. Friend on 4 February 2010,  Official Report, column 508W.

10 Downing Street: Security

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what criteria are used to determine the granting of a Downing Street pass; and how many such passes there are.

Angela Smith: Passes for access to 10, 11 and 12 Downing Street are issued to staff who work in the building and to individuals who require access for business purposes.

Admiralty House

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the cost to the public purse of  (a) rent,  (b) utility bills,  (c) council tax payments and  (d) other running costs for each Ministerial residence in Admiralty House was in each of the last three years.

Angela Smith: Admiralty House is held freehold and no rent is payable. Along with other shared costs, utility costs are calculated on the basis of a share of those for Admiralty House as a whole and are not held separately for individual flats. One flat has been vacant since 27 July 2009; another vacant since 27 June 2007; and another vacant since 30 June 2006. All the flats are in council tax band H.

Business: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how many businesses were registered for value added tax in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point in each year since 1997.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
	 Letter from Stephen Penneck, dated April 2010:
	As Director General for the Office for National Statistics, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question concerning how many businesses were registered for value added tax in (a) Essex and (b) Castle Point in each year since 1997.
	Annual statistics on counts of VAT and/or PAYE based enterprises are available for 2009 from the ONS release UK Business: Activity, Size and Location at
	www.statistics.gov.uk.
	The table below is a subset of this, containing just VAT based enterprise statistics and shows the count of VAT based Enterprises in Essex County and Castle Point for each year from 1997.
	
		
			  Count of VAT based Enterprises in Essex county and Castle Point from 1997-2009 
			   Essex county  Castle Point 
			 1997 42,065 n/a 
			 1998 43,625 2,105 
			 1999 37,705 2,130 
			 2000 38,655 2,160 
			 2001 39,100 2,165 
			 2002 39,395 2,190 
			 2003 39,705 2,205 
			 2004 39,435 2,160 
			 2005 40,090 2,160 
			 2006 40,505 2,215 
			 2007 41,065 2,245 
			 2008 42,475 2,295 
			 2009 42,390 2,235

Central Office of Information: Advertising

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much the Central Office of Information's marketing, advertising and public relations expenditure  (a) was in 2008-09 and  (b) is planned to be in 2009-10; and how much has been spent in 2009-10 to date.

Tessa Jowell: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the right hon. Member.
	 Letter from Mark Lund, dated 7 April 2010:
	asking for COI expenditure on marketing, advertising and public relations from 2008-2010.
	The Central Office of Information's marketing, advertising and public relations expenditure in 2008-09 was £380.8m.
	The COI cannot provide planned expenditure for 2009-10 as it is determined by the requirements of our Client Departments.
	Expenditure to date for 2009-10 can only be provided once the annual accounts have been fully audited.

Central Office of Information: Advertising

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much was spent by the Central Office of Information on advertising in the first three quarters of financial year 2009-10.

Tessa Jowell: I have asked the chief executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
	 Letter from Mark Lund, dated 7 April 2010:
	asking how much was spent by the Central Office of Information on advertising in the first three quarters of financial year 2009-10.
	Expenditure to date for 2009-10 can only be provided once the annual accounts have been fully audited.

Central Office of Information: Advertising

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office how much the Central Office of Information has spent on contracts with advertising agencies with registered offices outside the UK in each of the last three years; with which agencies the contracts were with; in which centres the registered offices were located; and if she will make a statement.

Tessa Jowell: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Central Office of Information: Marketing

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office for what reason promotional stress items are included in the Central Office of Information contract referred to in Contract Notice 2009/S 79-113888; what bodies have purchased promotional stress items through the Central Office of Information in the last three years; and at what cost such items were purchased.

Tessa Jowell: I have asked the Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
	 Letter from Mark Lund, dated 7 April 2010:
	regarding the Merchandising and Promotional Framework.
	No supplier was appointed against Lot1: Label 23: Promotional Stress items print and production of stress items on the merchandising and promotional items framework and therefore no expenditure has been made.

Departmental Internet

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether the Downing Street Twitter service will be terminated during the general election purdah period.

Tessa Jowell: Yes.

Departmental Lost Property

John Mason: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what property has been recorded as  (a) lost and  (b) stolen from her Department in the last 12 months; and what estimate has been made of the cost of the replacement of that property.

Angela Smith: In the last 12 months the Cabinet Office has recorded six departmental assets as being reported as missing or stolen.
	The six items are:
	two mobile phones;
	one Blackberry charger;
	one keyboard;
	an electric heater; and
	an assortment of laptop accessories.
	The total cost of replacement is £772.81.

Departmental Official Hospitality

Philip Hammond: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what the five most expensive hospitality events hosted by her Department and its agency were in the last three years; and what the  (a) cost and  (b) purpose was of each.

Angela Smith: Events hosted by the Cabinet Office include official dinners and events for foreign leaders and other dignitaries, receptions for business leaders, community and charity representatives and sportsmen and women.
	Information on official and charity receptions held at 10 Downing Street is published by means of an annual list as soon as it is ready at the end of the financial year.

Departmental Responsibilities

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what plans she has to establish a single management team and united press office for 10 Downing Street and the Cabinet Office.

Tessa Jowell: Management of the three core communications functions in the Prime Minister's Office and the Cabinet Office-press office, strategic communications and digital communications-is being merged into one senior team. This will improve co-ordination and efficiency.
	The new management team was agreed in March 2010 and a revised staff structure across the core communications functions will be in place by 1 July.

Government Departments: Internet

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 27 January 2010,  Official Report, column 969W, on the Government departments: internet, 
	(1)  if she will list the website address of each of the 479 websites that were committed to be closed but have not yet been closed;
	(2)  if she will place in the Library a copy of the full Website Review report summary, listing the  (a) operational and to be continued,  (b) closed and  (c) operational but due for closure websites in the case of each public authority for which records are held.

Tessa Jowell: I have asked the Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information to write to the hon. Member.
	 Letter from Mark Lund, dated 7 April 2010:
	As Chief Executive of the Central Office of Information (COI), I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question [318307/8] on Government Websites.
	A Website Review report summary itemising what is requested will be placed in the Library in April 2010 updating the previous version placed in February 2010.

Government Departments: Private Detectives

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 5 February 2010,  Official Report, column 602W, on Government departments: private detectives, which departments have commissioned individuals from the panel of independent investigators in the last 24 months.

Tessa Jowell: It has been the policy of successive Governments not to reveal details of specific security matters.

Government Departments: Private Detectives

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 5 February 2010,  Official Report, column 602W, on Government departments: private detectives, how much expenditure has been incurred on commissioning individuals from the panel of independent investigators in the last 24 months.

Tessa Jowell: Costs for panel members are incurred by individual Departments. This information is not held centrally.

Government Departments: Private Detectives

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer of 5 February 2010,  Official Report, column 602W, on Government departments: private detectives, on how many occasions individuals from the panel of independent investigators have been commissioned to undertake investigations in the last 24 months.

Tessa Jowell: It has been the policy of successive Governments not to reveal details of specific security matters.

Ministerial Policy Advisers

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office with reference to the written ministerial statement of 16 July 2009,  Official Report, column 73W, on special advisers, what criteria are used to determine the pay band of a special adviser.

Tessa Jowell: The criteria used to determine the pay band of a special adviser are underpinned by a tailored job evaluation scheme.

Music: Licensing Laws

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 10 March 2010,  Official Report, column 280, on music licensing levies, what the statutory basis is which requires the arrangements for music licensing levies to apply to church halls.

David Lammy: I have been asked to reply.
	In the UK, the statutory basis for the licensing of music, sound recordings and performances, including in church halls, is set out in the Copyright Designs and Patents Act (CDPA) 1988 (as amended).

Music: Licensing Laws

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 10 March 2010,  Official Report, column 280, on music licensing levies, what the timetable is for discussions with the voluntary sector and the subsequent laying and ratification of secondary legislation.

David Lammy: I have been asked to reply.
	Discussions between PPL and the third sector to find the best possible music licensing system are ongoing, initiated by my ministerial colleagues at the Office for the Third Sector. A number of issues remain to be resolved, and in the circumstances it has not been possible to introduce the planned legislative changes before the dissolution of Parliament prior to the forthcoming general election.

Music: Licensing Laws

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 10 March 2010,  Official Report, column 280, on music licensing levies, if she will publish the evidential basis for changes to the original estimate of £20 million cost to the voluntary sector.

David Lammy: I have been asked to reply.
	The impact assessment estimated the average annual cost to the third sector of the repeal of the current exemptions contained in s. 67 and 72(1B)(a) of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be £18.7 million per year for the purchasing of Phonographic Performance Limited (PPL) licences. This has not been changed. Full details of the impact assessment were published and are available here:
	http://www.ipo.gov.uk/govresponse-musiclicensing.pdf
	The impact assessment figure of £18.7 million was based on a flat fee of £81 per annum for each music user. PPL have now indicated that they charge most commercial organisations like hairdressers, pubs and offices between £50 and £120 per year and it is likely that most third sector organisations would be charged at the lower end of this range. This would reduce the original estimate of £18.7 million. But the actual cost of repeal would be dependent on the tariffs agreed through negotiation between PPL and the third sector organisations.

National Identity Register

Grant Shapps: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office whether the proposed citizen's unique identifier will be linked to the National Identity Register.

Tessa Jowell: The Prime Minister gave a speech on 22 March 2010 on Building Britain's Digital Future, in which he outlined the need to make it easy and convenient for the citizen to prove identity when using online services. The Digital Delivery Programme is working with others across Government, including the National Identity Service, on how this can be achieved.
	The purpose of the National Identity Service is to ensure that citizens can prove their identity in a secure and convenient way when they need to in a range of different situations. It can play an important part in achieving better access to services online. However, no final decisions on how a unique citizen identifier might be reflected on the National Identity Register have yet been taken.

Official Residences

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 13 January 2010,  Official Report, column 1002W, on official residences: repairs and maintenance, and with reference to the Cabinet Office's Annual Report and Accounts 2008-09, what the monetary value was of the fixed asset expenditure in relation to Crown Proposal 08/00696/1884; and which suppliers were commissioned to undertake the work.

Angela Smith: I have nothing further to add to the answer given on 13 January 2010,  Official Report, column 1003W.

Social Investment Wholesale Bank

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what timetable has been set for the launch of the Social Investment Wholesale Bank announced in Budget 2010.

Angela Smith: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Statistics

Francis Maude: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office what research has been undertaken into the levels of public confidence in Government statistics in the last 10 years.

Angela Smith: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.
	 Letter from Sir Michael Scholar KCB, dated April 2010:
	.
	There have been three surveys of public confidence in official statistics undertaken in the last ten years, in 2004, 2005 and 2007. Detailed analyses of the results of these surveys are available at the following links:
	 2004 survey :
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/about/data/public_confidence/downloads/BritishOfficialStat.pdf
	 2005 survey :
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/about/data/public_confidence/downloads/OmnibusMarch05.pdf
	 2007 survey:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/about/data/public_confidence/downloads/pcos_2007.pdf
	Additional information about public confidence in official statistics and the surveys is available at the following link:
	http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=13967
	The UK Statistics Authority expects to publish the results of an updated survey of public confidence in official statistics, and related analysis, later this year.

BUSINESS, INNOVATION AND SKILLS

Business: Credit

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps his Department has taken to increase the level of access to credit for small businesses in  (a) Coventry and  (b) the West Midlands in the last two years.

Rosie Winterton: The Government have introduced a range of measures to help businesses through the global recession and to promote growth during the recovery. These include:
	 The Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG)
	This encourages additional bank lending to creditworthy SMEs with viable business cases who do not have sufficient security available to support their borrowing request on a normal commercial basis. Over £1.28 billion of eligible EFG applications from over 11,400 firms have been granted, are being processed or assessed, and over 8,940 businesses have been offered loans totalling nearly £910 million.
	Set out in the following table is the information for the Enterprise Finance Guarantee for Coventry and the west midlands.
	
		
			   Number of loans offered  Number of loans drawn  Value of loans offered  (£ million)  Value of loans drawn 
			 Coventry 26 19 4.07 2.43 
			 West midlands 812 687 83.07 67.08 
		
	
	 The Capital for Enterprise Fund
	The fund supports viable businesses with equity or mezzanine investment aimed at releasing and sustaining growth, investing between £200,000 and £2 million where the business has exhausted its borrowing capacity with lenders.
	To date the appointed fund managers have made offers totalling £98.7 million to 66 businesses, including three in the west midlands worth £4.8 million. 26 businesses have received investment, including one in the west midlands with a value of £2 million. I am not providing this breakdown by parliamentary constituency as this could make it possible to identify the individual companies that have received, or are under consideration for, support.
	The fund is now closed to new applications, although businesses are still receiving investments from existing applications.
	 HM Revenue and Customs' Business Support Service
	This reviews payment of businesses tax liabilities and tries to come to an arrangement that allows companies to spread payments to help them over temporary difficulties. So far, there have been agreements made with over 200,000 businesses to spread more than £2.5 billion in business taxes. Changes to tax rules allow loss-making businesses to temporarily extend trading loss carry-back from one to three years for losses up to £50,000. In the west midlands, 27,800 arrangements have been made to defer payments of £480 million.
	 Business Link Health Checks
	These provide a free review of businesses with a professional business adviser for hands-on advice and help accessing the full range of Government help. To the end of February 2009, over 128,000 businesses benefitted from a health check, including 15,487 businesses in the west midlands.
	 Prompt Payment
	In the financial year 2009-10, central Government expects to pay an additional £40 billion to suppliers within 10 days (a target set in October 2008) compared to 2008-09, and 19 out of 20 central Government invoices are now paid in 10 days.
	 The Working Capital Scheme (WCS)
	WCS has provided guarantees to two banks on portfolios of short-term loans with good credit risk in order to release regulatory capital to enable those banks to increase lending to businesses. The two banks with WCS guarantees, Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland, have made lending commitments of £39 billion.
	Public Borrowing Review 2009 announced that as the broader Asset Protection Scheme now provides banks with considerably greater capital release, so new portfolios will not be guaranteed under the WCS although existing portfolio guarantees will remain until March 2011. Companies' access to the WCS was through the banks; they did not apply for it directly.

Business: Credit

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent discussions he has had with representatives of small and medium-sized enterprises located in Coventry on their access to credit.

Rosie Winterton: Access to credit is a key issue as UK economy moves to recovery. Ministers are in regular contact with small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and access to credit continues to be a major topic for discussion. In particular, the Minster for Trade, Investment and Small Business visited Coventry, Birmingham and Worcester in 2009, where he participated in Q and A sessions with businesses of all sizes on a variety of topics. He also attended the 2010 annual FSB conference where access to credit featured in the discussion with the audience.
	The Minister for the West Midlands has regularly discussed the issue in his meetings with local business organisations and local business people and it was featured in his speech to the West Midlands Economic Forum which took place in February in Coventry.
	Access to finance for SMEs was recognised in Budget 2010 where the Government, building on their support to business through the downturn such as the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme, announced measures such as the launch of the UK Finance for Growth, a body responsible for overseeing the Government stock of over £4 billion of SM finance products, including the Growth Capital Fund (announced in PBR 2009), for which £200 million of cornerstone investment has been raised so far from private sector and Government.
	In addition, the UK is continuing to work with the EU's financial institutions (the European Investment Bank and the European Investment Fund) to stimulate more venture capital and loan support for SMEs. Furthermore, the Budget announced the Small Business Credit Adjudicator (SBCA). Once established the SBCA will hear cases, referred by Business Link's Financial Intermediary Service (FIS), where a business may have been unfairly denied credit.
	To advise on the role and responsibilities of the SBCA the Government have launched a new task force. Enterprise Champion Lord Sugar, outgoing Federation of Small Businesses chairman John Wright and former Lloyd's TSB deputy chief executive Mike Fairey will comprise the task force. They will build on the work Lord Sugar has been doing with small businesses, FIS and the banks.

Business: Denton and Reddish

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many businesses in Denton and Reddish constituency have received support from his Department since 2008.

Rosie Winterton: Since April 2008, 1,847 businesses in Denton and Reddish have received business advice through Business Link North West. Five businesses have received grants or loans totalling £336,669.

Business: Government Assistance

Willie Rennie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the small firms loan guarantee scheme.

Rosie Winterton: holding answer 30 March 2010
	In January 2010, the Department published the Economic Evaluation of the Small Firms Loan Guarantee undertaken by the Institute of Employment Studies.
	This study rigorously tested the effectiveness and value for money of SFLG and concludes that the basic rationale for SFLG is supported and that it appears to be a cost-effective way of supporting additional economic activity in the small business sector.
	More specifically, the majority (81 per cent.) of SFLG recipients receive SFLG on their first loan application. For a majority (76 per cent.) of SFLG recipients, there were no alternative sources of finance available to them.
	This is confirmed by 79 per cent. of SFLG recipients reporting the bank would probably, or definitely not, have given them a loan without SFLG. Just under half (49 per cent.) of businesses would definitely, or probably not, have proceeded with their project without SFLG.
	A growth in sales, jobs and exports is attributable to SFLG supported lending within the first two years of the loan. The 3,100 SFLG supported businesses in 2006 have created between 3,550 to 6,340 additional jobs in the two years following receipt of the loan, created between £75 million and £150 million additional sales over two years; and were responsible for £33 million exports per annum.
	Just within two years of receiving the loan the benefits of the scheme are outweighing the costs.
	SFLG appears to be a particularly cost effective way of creating additional employment.
	The full report is available via the BIS website:
	http://www.bis.gov.uk/files/file54112.doc
	The Small Firms Loan Guarantee was replaced by the Enterprise Finance Guarantee in January 2009.

Business: Government Assistance

Willie Rennie: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what discussions his Department has had with Royal Bank of Scotland on its administration of the small firms loan guarantee scheme.

Ian Lucas: holding answer 30 March 2010
	The Small Firms Loan Guarantee (SFLG) was replaced by the Enterprise Finance Guarantee (EFG) in January 2009.
	Ministers have regular discussions with representatives of each of the main UK lenders regarding a range of SME finance issues including via the Small Business Finance Forum.
	Capital for Enterprise Ltd. (CfEL), which is responsible for operational delivery of SFLG and EFG on behalf of the Department, maintains a regular dialogue with each of the accredited lenders specifically regarding their administration of these schemes.

Business: Government Assistance

Richard Burden: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many  (a) small,  (b) medium-sized and  (c) large businesses in Birmingham have received assistance under (i) the Working Capital Scheme, (ii) the Enterprise Finance Guarantee scheme, (iii) the Capital Enterprise Scheme, (iv) the Regional Loan Transition Fund and (v) the Phoenix Fund since each scheme's inception.

Rosie Winterton: The information is as follows:
	(i) The Working Capital Scheme (WCS) has provided guarantees to two banks on portfolios of short-term loans with good credit risk in order to release regulatory capital to enable those banks to increase lending to businesses. The two banks with WCS guarantees, Lloyds Banking Group and Royal Bank of Scotland, have made lending commitments of £39 billion.
	Public Borrowing Review 2009 announced that as the broader Asset Protection Scheme now provides banks with considerably greater capital release, so new portfolios will not be guaranteed under the WCS although existing portfolio guarantees will remain until March 2011. Companies' access to the WCS was through the banks; they did not apply for it directly.
	(ii) The Enterprise Finance Guarantee is open to SMEs with a turnover of up to £25 million, rather than large businesses. A total of 142 loans worth £16.16 million have been offered to Birmingham businesses under the Enterprise Finance Guarantee, of which 118 loans worth £11.40 million have been drawn down. Loans under the scheme are available to firms with a turnover of up to £25 million and are not therefore available to large businesses.
	(iii) The Capital for Enterprise fund provides support to SMEs rather than large businesses. To date the appointed fund managers have made offers totalling £98.7 million to 66 businesses, including three in the West Midlands worth £4.8 million. 26 businesses have received investment, including one in the West Midlands with a value of £2 million. I am not providing this breakdown by parliamentary constituency as this could make it possible to identify the individual companies that have received, or are under consideration, for support.
	(iv) The Advantage Transition Bridge Fund (ATBF) provided loans worth £2,677,000 to 18 companies in Birmingham. Information breaking these loans down by the size of the businesses is not available. The fund closed for new loans from 1 December 2009.
	(v) During the Phoenix fund (which ran from 2002-06) Government provided £1.886 million to Community Development Finance Institutes (CDFIs) operating mainly in the Birmingham area. This capital was onward lent to 130 start up and existing businesses (the vast majority of these will have been in the Birmingham area).
	Since the end of the Phoenix fund Advantage West Midlands has provided support to CDFIs and other lenders under the Advantage Small Loan scheme and more recently the Small Business Loan programme. Both have drawn on ERDF funding as well as funds from AWM and local authorities. Between 1 April 2007 and 31 December 2009 Aston Reinvestment Trust (ART) and the Arrow Fund (two of the alternative lenders which have received funding under these programmes) made 235 loans totalling £3.574 million to businesses in Birmingham and Solihull.

Business: Government Assistance

Jim Cunningham: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what additional assistance his Department provided to small and medium-sized enterprises located in  (a) Coventry and  (b) the West Midlands during the recent recession.

Rosie Winterton: It has not been possible to respond to my hon. Friend in the time available before Prorogation.

Copyright: Music

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether the new regime of PPL music licensing will remove exemptions from  (a) student unions and  (b) educational institutions.

David Lammy: Discussions between PPL and the third sector to find the best possible music licensing system are ongoing, initiated by my ministerial colleagues at the Office for the Third Sector. A number of issues remain to be resolved, and in the circumstances it has not been possible to introduce the planned legislative changes before the dissolution of Parliament prior to the forthcoming general election.

Departmental Internet

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many complaints his Department received regarding difficulties using its website in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Lucas: According to departmental records, no formal complaints have been received in the past year by the Department or its Ministers about difficulties operating the Department's corporate websites (including the websites of the former Departments for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS)). No formal complaints on this topic were recorded in the lifetime of the DIUS website. Records of formal complaints to BERR are not available prior to March 2009 when procedures were overhauled.
	The Department receives informal feedback from website users on an ongoing basis by email and via contact forms on its websites, including occasional comments on website usability.

Departmental Internet

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on external website design consultants in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Lucas: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Minister of State for Business, Innovation and Skills to the hon. Member for North-East Hertfordshire (Mr. Heald) on 29 March 2010,  Official Report, columns 810-811W.

Departmental Location

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much his Department spent on the relocation of staff from posts in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point constituency in each of the last five years.

Ian Lucas: The Department did not relocate any staff from posts in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point constituency in each of the last five years.

Exports: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many companies in  (a) Essex and  (b) Castle Point made exports in each year since 1997.

Ian Lucas: holding answer 7 April 2010
	HM Revenue and Customs publishes the UK Regional Trade in Goods Statistics, the most recent issue was published on 11 March 2010. A copy can be found at:
	https://www.uktradeinfo.com/pagecontent/downloads/RtsPRDataTablesQ409.pdf
	These statistics provide data at regional level only so we are unable to confirm the number of exporting companies in the county of Essex or the district of Castle Point.

Foreign Investment: Essex

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has made of  (a) the monetary value of foreign client investment in (i) Essex and (ii) Castle Point in each year since 2003 and  (b) the number of jobs created as a consequence in each such year.

Ian Lucas: holding answer 7 April 2010
	It has not been possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Further Education: Finance

Justine Greening: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what estimate he has of the number of colleges in  (a) England and  (b) London which incurred costs in preparing capital bids to the Learning and Skills Council which were not proceeded with; and what estimate has been made of the total financial effect on those colleges in (i) England and (ii) London of the capital bids not proceeding.

Kevin Brennan: 171 colleges in England, 25 of which are in London, incurred property costs on projects not currently proceeding. All colleges were eligible for normal grant support towards these costs as set out in the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) Capital Handbook and additional capital support was also made available to 42 of the colleges experiencing the most serious financial difficulties as a result of their aborted capital programmes. In total, the net cost to colleges was £126 million, with colleges in London incurring costs of £27 million.
	Since 2001 LSC grant support to projects has amounted to £3.4 billion.

Imports

David Laws: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills whether measures to limit imports into the UK from countries which have not enacted legislation equivalent to the Climate Change Act 2008 are permissible under Article XX of GATT.

Ian Lucas: In accordance with World Trade Organisation (WTO) case law, to comply with Article XX of GATT any such import restriction would need inter alia to:
	be primarily aimed at the conservation of exhaustible natural resources;
	be the least trade-restrictive method of achieving the desired level of protection of the environment;
	take proper account of the different ways in which countries may seek to pursue the same environmental goals and the needs of developing countries;
	not constitute a means of unfair discrimination.

Industry: Denton and Reddish

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills what steps he is taking to encourage private sector investment in industry in Denton and Reddish constituency; and if he will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: Support from the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) has helped to turn Broadstone Mill in Reddish into a state-of-the-art workspace with business incubation facilities, aimed specifically at innovative new businesses in the knowledge economy. Further grants have been awarded to businesses operating within the incubator. Businesses in Denton and Reddish are also eligible for support under the Government's North West Intensive Startup Support Programme (ISUS) launched in January.

Learning and Skills Council: Sweet Concepts

Nick Hurd: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills pursuant to the answer of 22 February 2010,  Official Report, column 156W, on the Central Office of Information: marketing, what promotional products were purchased from Sweet Concepts Ltd on behalf of the  (a) Learning and Skills Council and  (b) University for Industry; and at what cost in each case.

Kevin Brennan: The Central Office of Information purchased promotional food items from Sweet Concepts Ltd. on behalf of:
	 (a) Learning and Skills Council at a total cost of £6,655
	 (b) University for Industry (Ufi) at a total cost of £1,498.

Local Press: Competition

John Grogan: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills if he will refer the transfer of Guardian Media Group to Trinity Mirror to the Competition Commission to investigate potential monopolies in media ownership in Cheshire and Surrey.

Kevin Brennan: holding answer 6 April 2010
	 The responsibility for investigating and making decisions on mergers falls to the UK's independent competition authorities. In this case, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is investigating the acquisition under the Enterprise Act 2002 which will include whether it creates potential monopolies in markets.
	The OFT will announce its conclusions in due course including whether or not to refer the merger to the Competition Commission.

Optics: Technology

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how much research funding his Department has provided to the  (a) Optic Research and Incubation Centre at St Asaph Business Park and  (b) members of the Welsh Opto-Electronic Forum in each of the last 10 years; and how much such funding it plans to provide to each of those organisations in each of the next three years.

David Lammy: It has not been possible to respond to my hon. Friend in the time available before Prorogation.

Overseas Students: Entry Clearances

Bob Spink: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how many places on higher education courses in  (a) England and  (b) Essex have been awarded to Tier 4 (General) student visa holders; and how many such students did not attend their course.

David Lammy: holding answer 7 April 2010
	It has not been possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Students: Loans

Lembit �pik: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills how long on average the Student Loans Company has taken to process an application for a student loan in each year since 2005; and if he will make a statement.

David Lammy: Academic year 2009-10 was the first year of operation for the new centralised Student Finance England service when all new students studying in England applied for support to the Student Loans Company (SLC), rather than to their local authority, and therefore we can only provide data for this year. The National Audit Office(1) found that the SLC took an average of 12.4 weeks to process new applications.
	(1) The Customer First Programme: Delivery of Student Finance - Report by National Audit Office, page 5 - point 6, 19 March 2010.

WORK AND PENSIONS

Attendance Allowance: Na-h-Eileanan an Iar

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Na-h-Eileanan an Iar constituency received attendance allowance in  (a) 2009-10,  (b) 2008-09 and  (c) 2007-08.

Jonathan R Shaw: The available information is in the table:
	
		
			  Attendance  a llowance - cases in payment in Na-h-Eileanan an  I ar parliamentary constituency 
			  Quarter ending  Number 
			 February 2007 880 
			 May 2007 900 
			 August 2007 930 
			 November 2007 940 
			 February 2008 960 
			 May 2008 980 
			 August 2008 1,030 
			 November 2008 1,090 
			 February 2009 1,090 
			 May 2009 1,110 
			 August 2009 1,150 
			  Notes: 1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Cases in payment show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended.  Source:  DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study

Carer's Allowance: Na-h-Eileanan an Iar

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people in Na-h-Eileanan an Iar constituency received carer's allowance in  (a) 2009-10,  (b) 2008-09 and  (c) 2007-08.

Jonathan R Shaw: The information is in the table:
	
		
			  Carer's  a llowance - cases in payment in Na-h-Eileanan an  I ar parliamentary constituency 
			  Quarter ending  Number 
			 February 2007 200 
			 May 2007 200 
			 August 2007 200 
			 November 2007 200 
			 February 2008 200 
			 May 2008 200 
			 August 2008 200 
			 November 2008 200 
			 February 2009 200 
			 May 2009 190 
			 August 2009 190 
			  Notes: 1. Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Cases in payment show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended.  Source:  DWP Information Directorate Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study

Housing Benefit

Theresa May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions with reference to the consultation document entitled Supporting people into work: the next stage of housing benefit reform, 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the effects of the implementation of local housing allowance on the expenditure on housing benefit; and what estimate she made of the cost to the public purse of local housing allowance at the time of its implementation;
	(2)  what her Department's  (a) original estimate was and  (b) most recent estimate is of the effect on the overall level of expenditure on housing benefit of the introduction of local housing allowance.

Helen Goodman: On 15 December the housing benefit consultation, 'Supporting people into work: the next stage of housing benefit reform', was launched. The consultation concluded on 22 February 2010. We are now considering the responses and we will set out how we will take forward our proposals in due course.
	In 2004-05 nine Pathfinder local authorities piloted the local housing allowance. In 2005 the pilot was extended to cover a further nine local authorities, so as to cover a total of 18 local authorities.
	In the pre-Budget report 2006 it was confirmed that,
	'subject to the successful passage of the Welfare Reform Bill, the Government will introduce the local housing allowance across the private rented sector for all new housing benefit claimants and those who move house from April 2008'.
	At this time the estimated impact of the national roll-out of local housing allowance alone, all other external and market factors equal, on the Annual Managed Expenditure (AME) was an additional £20 million in the first year, against a total expenditure in the private rented sector of £4.3 billion for 2006-07.
	This estimate is now likely to be out-of-date due to a number of factors, including the impact of the recession on the caseload size and composition, and changes in the boundaries of the areas from which local housing allowance rates are calculated. Due to the complexities involved in adjusting for such factors, and the lack of administrative data covering part of this period, a current estimate of the effect of the introduction of local housing allowance on the overall level of housing benefit expenditure is not available.

Low Incomes

Lindsay Roy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps her Department is taking to address the matter of low pay.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 16 March 2010
	I have been asked to reply.
	The Government introduced the national minimum wage (NMW) in April 1999 to ensure a decent minimum rate of pay for all employees. In October 2010, the adult NMW rate will rise to £5.93 per hour. Table 5.1 in Budget 2010 shows the minimum income guaranteed by the combination of working and child tax credits and the NMW once the new rate comes into effect. A family with one child and one person working 35 hours a week will receive a minimum income of £310 per week, a 27 per cent. increase in real terms since April 1999.

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Angola: Foreign Relations

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment he has made of the UK-Angolan bilateral relationship.

Ivan Lewis: Our strategic partnership with Angola is developing well. Given Angola's geo-political importance, it is important that our two governments should consult closely and we are strengthening collaboration on a range of regional and international issues. In line with the Angolan Government's wish to diversify the economy, UK investment is broadening in this, the third-largest economy in sub-Saharan Africa. The new constitution in February and President Jose Eduardo dos Santos' zero-tolerance policy on corruption make it particularly timely to be deepening the relationship. The UK has an important role in supporting Angola's development, building on traditional links but also uncovering new opportunities. Beyond inter-governmental cooperation, UK-based non-governmental organisations and the private sector are key parts of this process. We hope also to develop ideas for working with key constitutional bodies, including the National Assembly, in which support from Members of the House would be valuable.

China: Abortion

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what reports he has received on the discovering of 21 foetuses and baby bodies in the Guangfu river, Jining City, China; whether he has made representations to the government of China on this matter; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

China: Family Planning

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports he has received on the operation of a one child policy by the government of China; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

China: Family Planning

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Government of China on its population planning policies; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

China: Family Planning

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions officials in the British Embassy in China have had with Chinese officials on  (a) forced abortion and sterilisation and  (b) birth control quotas in China; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

China: Family Planning

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make representations to the Government of China to relax its population planning policy; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

China: Political Prisoners

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions  (a) he,  (b) Ministers in his Department and  (c) officials in the British Embassy in China have had with the government of China on the case of Chen Guangcheng; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Crimes of Violence: Females

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what role the Minister with lead responsibility for the Government's work to tackle violence against women overseas will have in the Government's cross-departmental strategy to tackle violence against women.

Ivan Lewis: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Departmental Information Officers

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the cost to his Department was of employing press and media officers in the last 12 month period for which figures are available; and what the cost to his Department was of employing such staff in the financial year 1996-97, expressed in real terms.

Chris Bryant: This information is not held centrally and could not be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.

Middle East: Armed Conflict

Andrew Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations he has made to  (a) the government of Iran and  (b) the Palestinian Authority on the fate of the missing Israeli service personnel; and if he will make a statement.

Ivan Lewis: We consistently call for the immediate release of Gilad Shalit. The EU reiterated this call in the December Foreign Affairs Council conclusions and made our collective position very clear in international meetings, most recently during the Quartet meeting in Moscow on 19 March.

Nigeria: Violence

John Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with his Nigerian counterpart on the recent violence in Jos.

Ivan Lewis: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary condemned the recent violence in Jos in a joint statement with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and EU High Representative Baroness Ashton on 29 January. I raised UK concerns with former Foreign Minister Maduekwe on 15 March, and my noble Friend the Minister of State for Africa discussed earlier disturbances in Jos with the former Foreign Minister, when she met him on 20 January. Our high commission in Abuja remains in frequent contact with state and federal authorities on this issue, and has continued to urge the Nigerian Government to bring those responsible for crimes to justice, and to address the underlying causes of conflict.

Passports: Fraud

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the Oral Statement of 23 March 2010,  Official Report, columns 133-4, on UK passports (use in Dubai murder), what the other reasons are for not releasing the report by the Serious Organised Crime Agency.

Ivan Lewis: The report was compiled as the result of a criminal investigation by the Serious Organised Crime Agency into the use of counterfeit British passports. Such reports which may lead to, or be relevant to, criminal proceedings in the UK or elsewhere are not released.

Southern Africa: HIV Infection

Neil Gerrard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to fulfil its commitments under the Achieving Universal Access AIDS Strategy, in (a) Lesotho,  (b) Botswana and  (c) Swaziland.

Ivan Lewis: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)'s role under the Government's Achieving Universal Access HIV strategy is primarily focused on advocacy and lobbying to support the aims of the strategy. In doing this, we work closely with a broad range of partners in relevant countries, including the host government, non-government and multilateral organisations and other major donors.
	Given the continued high level of infection rates in Southern Africa, there are several large bilateral and multilateral donors working with the governments in Lesotho, Botswana and Swaziland. The FCO's efforts in these countries are therefore focused on providing political support to the major donors and international organisations, as well as providing support to non-government organisations.
	For example, in Botswana, our high commission follows the HIV situation and policies closely, maintains links with the National AIDS Coordination Agency and the Botswana Network on Ethics, Law and HIV/AIDS. It also looks for opportunities to support the major bilateral HIV/AIDS donors in addressing sensitive issues.
	Our non-resident diplomatic representation to Lesotho or Swaziland is based at our high commission in Pretoria, where our staff monitor and report on developments in country and have a dialogue with a range of relevant partners on HIV/AIDS issues. In Swaziland, for example, we have held discussions with the National Director of the National Emergency Response Council on HIV/AIDS as well as a number of non-governmental organisations.
	Our high commissions in Pretoria and Gaborone work closely with the Department for International Development (DFID) Southern Africa (based in Pretoria, South Africa), responsible for DFID's work in Lesotho, Botswana and Swaziland. Tackling HIV in the region is a priority for DFID Southern Africa. For example, DFID Southern Africa is funding a £23 million Behaviour Change Communication Programme across 10 countries (including Lesotho, Botswana and Swaziland), reaching 60 per cent. of the youth population. They are also contributing £18 million to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Children and AIDS Regional Initiative across six countries (including Lesotho, Botswana and Swaziland), helping orphans and vulnerable children affected by HIV and AIDS. At the national level in Lesotho, DFID Southern Africa is providing £2.5 million to the Apparel Lesotho Alliance to Fight AIDS (ALAFA) programme, providing HIV prevention, treatment and care services to 48,000 factory workers, 80 per cent. of whom are women.

Southern Africa: HIV Infection

David Borrow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department is taking to fulfil its commitments under the AIDS Strategy, Achieving Universal Access in  (a) Lesotho,  (b) Botswana and  (c) Swaziland.

Ivan Lewis: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO)'s role under the Government's Achieving Universal Access HIV strategy is primarily focussed on advocacy and lobbying to support the aims of the strategy. In doing this, we work closely with a broad range of partners in relevant countries, including the host government, non-government and multilateral organisations and other major donors.
	Given the continued high level of infection rates in Southern Africa, there are several large bilateral and multilateral donors working with the governments in Lesotho, Botswana and Swaziland. The FCO's efforts in these countries are therefore focussed on providing political support to the major donors and international organisations, as well as providing support to non-government organisations.
	For example, in Botswana, our high commission follows the HIV situation and policies closely, maintains links with the National AIDS Co-ordination Agency and the Botswana Network on Ethics, Law and HIV/AIDS. It also looks for opportunities to support the major bilateral HIV/AIDS donors in addressing sensitive issues.
	Our non-resident diplomatic representation to Lesotho or Swaziland is based at our high commission in Pretoria, where our staff monitor and report on developments in country and have a dialogue with a range of relevant partners on HIV/AIDS issues. In Swaziland, for example, we have held discussions with the National Director of the National Emergency Response Council on HIV/AIDS as well as a number of non-governmental organisations.
	Our high commissions in Pretoria and Gaborone work closely with the Department For International Development (DFID) Southern Africa (based in Pretoria, South Africa), responsible for DFID's work in Lesotho, Botswana and Swaziland. Tackling HIV in the region is a priority for DFID Southern Africa. For example, DFID Southern Africa is funding a £23 million Behaviour Change Communication Programme across 10 countries (including Lesotho, Botswana and Swaziland), reaching 60 per cent. of the youth population. They are also contributing £18 million to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Children and AIDS Regional Initiative across six countries (including Lesotho, Botswana and Swaziland), helping orphans and vulnerable children affected by HIV and AIDS. At the national level in Lesotho, DFID Southern Africa is providing £2.5 million to the Apparel Lesotho Alliance to Fight AIDS (ALAFA) programme, providing HIV prevention, treatment and care services to 48,000 factory workers, 80 per cent. of whom are women.

ENVIRONMENT FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS

Air Pollution: Shropshire

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Transport on air quality in Shropshire.

Jim Fitzpatrick: There have been no recent discussions between the Secretary of State for Environment Food and Rural Affairs and the Secretary of State for Transport on air quality in Shropshire. Ministers from both Departments met recently to discuss transport measures to improve air quality in the UK, and DEFRA and Department for Transport officials meet regularly to discuss national and local transport measures to improve air quality.

Climate Change

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on the effects of climate change on the UK's wildlife and habitat.

Huw Irranca-Davies: Recent discussions with ministerial colleagues include Government's publication Climate Change: Taking Action. This brings together the key themes from central Government Departments and is available from the Libraries of the House. The effects of climate change on biodiversity are considered in further detail in DEFRA's Adaptation Plan and the specific supplement on adaptation and the natural environment, available on the DEFRA website.

Coastal Erosion

John Whittingdale: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much the Environment Agency spent on sea defences in  (a) total,  (b) East Anglia and  (c) Essex in each of the last 10 years.

Huw Irranca-Davies: The following figures show the Environment Agency's spend on coastal and tidal schemes in England, East Anglia and Essex.
	
		
			  Sea and tidal schemes in England 
			   £ million 
			 2008-09 84 
			 2009-10 (forecast outturn) 95 
		
	
	
		
			  Sea and tidal defences capital expenditure figures 
			  £ million 
			   East Anglia  Essex 
			 2000-01 7.9 0.7 
			 2001-02 6.5 1.2 
			 2002-03 10.9 1.5 
			 2003-04 12.6 0.9 
			 2004-05 10.8 0.6 
			 2005-06 11.5 1.6 
			 2006-07 15.2 1.9 
			 2007-08 9.8 0.6 
			 2008-09 38 9.7 
			 2009-10 (forecast outturn) 24 3.5

Departmental Information Officers

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the cost to his Department was of employing press and media officers in the last 12 month period for which figures are available; and what the cost to his Department was of employing such staff in the financial year 1996-97, expressed in real terms.

Dan Norris: The total cost of employing staff in the DEFRA press office for the period of 1 April 2009 to 28 February 2010 was £906,316.80. Figures for March 2010 are not yet available.
	DEFRA was established in 2001. There are therefore no figures available for press office costs in 1996-97.

Departmental Internet

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many complaints his Department received regarding difficulties using its website in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Norris: There have been no complaints about the DEFRA website in the last three years through DEFRA's formal complaints process or via ministerial correspondence.
	We do not keep statistics of the ad hoc website feedback received by e-mail through the Contact Us option on the site. Where negative comments are received they are generally about the content rather than the operation of the website.
	In the month following the September 2009 redesign of the DEFRA website we received about 120 e-mails-many more than usual. This generally arose from unfamiliarity with the new design, and the in-house DEFRA web team followed up and helped overcome any temporary difficulties among users.
	In March 2010 DEFRA carried out a random website user survey which invited visitors to the DEFRA website to give a general comment on the website, as well as answer a series of structured questions about what they were using it for. Approximately two thirds of these general comments were negative. Many were not specifically about the website but they are all being followed up by the in- house team.

Departmental Internet

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department spent on external website design consultants in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Dan Norris: Expenditure on external website design consultants in the last three years is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Design consultancy costs (£) 
			 2007-08 0 
			 2008-09 59,447 
			 2009-10 56,979 
		
	
	Full external costs for the DEFRA website for this period were provided in the answer given on 27 January 2010,  Official Report, column 871W to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps).

Departmental Language Coaching

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many  (a) Ministers and  (b) civil servants in his Department received coaching in a foreign language in the last 12 months; what expenditure his Department incurred in providing such coaching; and in what languages such coaching was provided.

Dan Norris: In the last 12 months 13 staff members have received foreign language coaching at a cost of £11,643.90. The coaching is provided in French, Spanish and German.
	DEFRA has significant involvement in the EU policy agenda and the provision of language training for appropriate staff helps ensure that the Department can engage effectively with its European contacts.
	Ministers did not receive foreign language coaching.

Departmental Legal Costs

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department and its predecessors have spent in  (a) legal fees and  (b) compensation on legal cases concerning remuneration of its employees in each of the last 10 years.

Dan Norris: There have been no legal cases wholly concerning remuneration of employees brought against the Department for Environment and Rural Affairs or its executive agencies for the past four years. DEFRA is not able to provide data for any period prior to this. There are a number of cases concerning remuneration currently in progress but figures for these are not yet available as proceedings are still active.

Departmental Official Hospitality

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the five most expensive hospitality events hosted by his Department and its agencies were in the last three years; and what  (a) the cost and  (b) purpose of each such event was.

Dan Norris: DEFRA and its agencies conduct many public events throughout the year and the costs of each are carefully managed to ensure best value for money is achieved consistent with the objectives and purpose of the event. No central record is maintained of these events.
	DEFRA does not conduct hospitality events, these being precluded by the civil service code. But some hospitality, e.g. refreshments and buffets may be provided at events.
	Core financial systems do not always record the specific nature of the events and as all event costs are not directly allocated to a single account, the answer could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	No central records are kept by DEFRA of the events conducted by its eight agencies so to collect and collate answers would also incur disproportionate cost.

Departmental Publications

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 15 December 2009,  Official Report, column 974W, on departmental publications, if he will place in the Library a copy of each of the last 10 editions of his Department's Landscape staff magazine.

Dan Norris: We have arranged for a copy of each of the last 10 editions of Landscape to be placed in the Library.

Departmental Telephone Services

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs with reference to the answer of 3 November 2009,  Official Report, column 801W, on departmental telephone services, whether contracts were awarded for the provision of services relating to helplines.

Dan Norris: With reference to the answer of 3 November 2009,  Official Report, column 801W, and from information held centrally a contract was awarded to Vertex Data Science Ltd. on 18 October 2008 for a period of five years, to expire 17 October 2013. The helpline contract provides a single point of contact for all DEFRA general inquiries.

Farming Link

Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the  (a) production, printing and distribution costs and  (b) circulation figures are of his Department's publication Farming Link.

Dan Norris: holding answer 6 April 2010
	Farming Link is a 16-page full-colour A4 magazine and is DEFRA's main way of communicating with farmers and growers. It is produced and distributed to 136,462 addresses four times a year. As well as a printed version, an online version is produced which includes a searchable PDF as well as individual articles.
	Costs for 2009-10 were as follows:
	
		
			  Edition  Contractor  Cost (£) 
			  July 2009   
			 Postage Royal Mail 29,874.36 
			 Printing and distribution Communisis 32,476 
			 Editorial Specialist 16,354.15 
			 Design Specialist 5,299.20 
			 Photography Specialist 3,197 
			 Proofing Specialist 382.95 
			 Travel Specialist 253 
			 Bi-monthly online content Specialist 2,990 
			 Total  90,826 
			
			  October 2009   
			 Postage Royal Mail 29,178.91 
			 Printing and distribution Communisis 32,956 
			 Editorial Specialist 14,221 
			 Design Specialist 4,608 
			 Photography Specialist 2,400 
			 Proofing Specialist 280 
			 Travel Specialist 150 
			 Bi-monthly online content Specialist 2,600 
			 Total  86,394 
			
			  January 2010   
			 Postage Communisis/DSA 28,948 
			 Printing and distribution Communisis 32,219 
			 Editorial Specialist 14,221 
			 Design Specialist 4,608 
			 Photography Specialist 2,400 
			 Proofing Specialist 333 
			 Travel Specialist 297 
			 Bi-monthly online content Specialist 2,600 
			 Total  85,626 
			
			  March 2010   
			 Postage Communisis/DSA 28,948 
			 Printing and distribution Communisis 32,219 
			 Editorial Specialist 14,221 
			 Design Specialist 4,608 
			 Photography Specialist 2,400 
			 Proofing Specialist 333 
			 Travel Specialist 297 
			 Bi-monthly online content Specialist 2,600 
			 Total  85,626

Flood Control

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many  (a) homes and  (b) businesses are registered to receive warning messages from the Environment Agency's Floodline Warnings Direct; and how many properties have received such warnings since the Floodline was established.

Huw Irranca-Davies: There are 950,000 properties registered to receive warnings from the Environment Agency's Floodline Warnings Direct (FWD) service. Around 840,000 of these are homes and about 110,000 are businesses.
	As of 31 March 2010, almost 150,000 properties have received warnings since FWD was established on 25 January 2006.

Horses: Passports

James Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  how many horses have been issued with passports;
	(2)  how many horses have  (a) thoroughbred,  (b) individual pony and  (c) Horse Society passports;
	(3)  how many horses are recorded on the National Equine Database.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The National Equine Database shows that as of 25 March 2010, 1,204,833 passports have been issued by UK Passport Issuing Organisations (PIOs). Of these, 342, 242 were Weatherby's Thoroughbred passports. It is not possible to provide the number of individual pony and horse society passports as a number of organisations issue passports for both horses and ponies.
	As of 25 March 2010 the National Equine Database contains 1,606,680 horse records. These include data taken from passports, old breeding papers issued before the introduction of passports and horse performance records which cannot yet be matched to a passport. Therefore some horses will be dead or duplicated within the system.

Nature Conservation: Expenditure

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much his Department spent on protecting  (a) bats and  (b) other protected species in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Huw Irranca-Davies: More than 300 species are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010, including all species of bats. These will benefit from a diverse range of funding streams and conservation effort involving the DEFRA network of organisations and with the exception of any species-specific projects, figures are not accounted for in this way. I refer to my previous answer of 22 Mar 2010,  Official Report, column 138W, on overall biodiversity expenditure, which would include conservation of protected species.
	With specific regard to bats, the UK is a party to the Agreement on the Conservation of European Bats (the Eurobats Agreement) which promotes their protection internationally and for which the UK subscription in 2010 was £59,890.68. In addition the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) contributed £87,000 to the National Bat Monitoring Programme in 2009-10. Natural England estimates that it has spent approximately £370,000 on work intended to protect bats in 2009-10.

Oils: Waste Disposal

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what volume of waste oils has been exported to  (a) Germany,  (b) Italy and  (c) other EU member states (i) in total and (ii) for re-refining in the last three years.

Dan Norris: The following tables show the data requested.
	
		
			  Total exported 
			  Tonnes 
			   Italy  Germany  Other EU member states 
			 2007 0 257.75 6370.41 
			 2008 0 280.24 13104.52 
			 2009 0 5090.89 8588.16 
			 2010 0 324.72 3250.14 
		
	
	
		
			  Total exported for re-refining 
			  Tonnes 
			   Italy  Germany  Other EU member states 
			 2007 0 257.75 4261.17 
			 2008 0 0 5287.83 
			 2009 0 5090.89 5884.79 
			 2010 0 184.28 0 
		
	
	These data were obtained from the Environment Agency's National Transfrontier Shipments (NaTS) Database on 1 April 2010. NaTS records the details of all shipments of waste notified under the Waste Shipment Regulation (EC1013/2006/EC).
	The data for 2009-10 are currently an incomplete data set so these will be subject to change as data are received.

Oils: Waste Disposal

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent discussions his Department has had with representatives of the waste oil regeneration industry on promotion of investment in regeneration of waste oils.

Dan Norris: DEFRA continues to maintain regular contact with the waste oil industry on a variety of issues affecting the management of waste oil.
	Representatives of the waste oil processing industry are members of the Stakeholder Group relating to the transposition of the revised Waste Framework Directive (2008/98/EC), including the provisions in article 4 on the waste hierarchy and article 21 on waste oils. They were also involved in the Hazardous Waste Steering Group, which helped advise on the recently published Strategy for Hazardous Waste Management in England.
	Informal discussions with the sector indicate that proposed investors in regeneration continue to watch the market situation in the UK and greater re-refining remains a possibility.

Oils: Waste Disposal

David Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department has undertaken a life cycle assessment of the environmental impact arising from the export of waste oils for re-refining.

Dan Norris: DEFRA has not commissioned specific studies on the life cycle assessment of the environmental impact arising from the export of waste oils for re-refining. However, we are aware of the following life cycle studies:
	GEIR (Groupement Europeen de l'Industrie de la Regeneration, part of the Independent Union of the European Lubricants industry) report: Ecological and energetic assessment of re-refining used oils to base oils: Substitution of primarily produced base oils including semi-synthetic and synthetic compounds:
	http://www.geir-rerefining.org/documents/LCA_en_short_version.pdf
	The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Working Group on Waste Prevention and Recycling report: Improving Recycling Markets:
	http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/24/14/35582045.pdf
	The European Commission report: Critical Review Of Existing Studies And Life Cycle Analysis On The Regeneration And Incineration Of Waste Oils:
	http://ec.europa.eu/environment/waste/studies/oil/waste_oil_xsum.pdf

Poultry: Animal Welfare

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department plans to take to reduce the incidence of keel bone fractures in laying hens; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The Government recognise that this is a key welfare concern in laying hens, which is why DEFRA's animal welfare research programme is currently funding a three-year project by the university of Bristol on the impact of keel bone fractures on the welfare of laying hens. The aim of this study is to understand and identify risk factors associated with keel bone fractures in order to consider how to adapt production systems to improve the welfare of laying hens.

Waste Management: Business

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the effects of  (a) private finance initiative contracts relating to and  (b) Government funding of residual waste plants on the ability of small businesses and community groups to set up residual waste projects.

Dan Norris: DEFRA constantly assesses the financial markets to ensure that waste private finance initiative (PFI) projects are financially viable. This includes meetings with banks, contractors and waste companies as well as individual waste local authorities. In November 2009, Officials from DEFRA's Waste Infrastructure Delivery Programme (WIDP) hosted a meeting attended by representatives from some 20 banking institutions.
	PFI credits are given to local waste authorities and not to individual businesses and community groups. The local waste authority will then tender for companies within the PFI's criteria.

DEFENCE

Afghanistan: Peacekeeping Operations

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many improvised explosive devices have  (a) been defused and  (b) exploded in Afghanistan in each month since 2007.

Kevan Jones: Records of incidents for the whole of Afghanistan are not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	However, data are available for activity up to February 2010 concerning Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in the area of Helmand Province for which Task Force Helmand has responsibility. This area of responsibility has not stayed constant during the period in question.
	
		
			  Number of IED explosions recorded by Task Force Helmand 
			   2007  2008  2009  2010 
			 January 2 24 29 89 
			 February 6 24 30 164 
			 March 7 30 42 - 
			 April 9 27 27 - 
			 May 23 35 57 - 
			 June 23 52 102 - 
			 July 32 51 159 - 
			 August 16 48 114 - 
			 September 31 43 77 - 
			 October 24 35 67 - 
			 November 13 38 69 - 
			 December 20 39 70 - 
		
	
	The figures above refer to an explosion that has subsequently been reported by units operating within the Task Force Helmand area of responsibility. The figures include both 'laid' IEDs and suicide (both vehicle and person-borne) devices.
	
		
			  Number of IEDs neutralised recorded by Task Force Helmand 
			   2007  2008  2009  2010 
			 January 0 16 44 61 
			 February 0 20 54 107 
			 March 0 14 49 - 
			 April 1 18 67 - 
			 May 0 33 36 - 
			 June 3 12 142 - 
			 July 2 22 94 - 
			 August 6 21 113 - 
			 September 9 32 125 - 
			 October 3 23 88 - 
			 November 8 48 90 - 
			 December 14 31 132 - 
		
	
	The figures above refer to the recording of a device that has been located and subsequently confirmed as an IED. Action has then been taken to neutralise the device.

Armed Forces: Housing

Edward Vaizey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether full-time reserve service personnel are accommodated in married quarters at RAF Benson; and what the cost to the public purse has been of accommodating members of the regular Royal Air Force in premises away from RAF Benson in the last 12 months.

Kevan Jones: Service family accommodation (SFA) is provided to entitled regular service personnel and full-time reserve service (FTRS) full commitment (FC) reservists. However, there are no FTRS FC personnel occupying SFA at RAF Benson.
	FTRS limited commitment (LC) personnel do not have an entitlement to SFA, but are eligible to apply for surplus SFA and pay full market rent for occupancy. There is one FTRS LC occupying surplus SFA at RAF Benson, which was surplus when the officer moved in and attracts a full market rent. Exceptionally, given this officer's key role as a family liaison officer, he has not been required to move.
	Substitute service family accommodation (SSFA) is only ever used as a last resort in cases where service accommodation either does not exist, or is not available to entitlement. Families allocated SSFA may be invited to move to SFA should it subsequently become available. Given the associated disruption to families and the potential impact on schooling, personnel and their families are not obliged to move.
	There are currently 33 families occupying SSFA in the Benson area. The rental cost to the Ministry of Defence for these families over the last 12 months was around £460,000. A more accurate figure cannot be given as properties are vacated at various times.

Cluster Munitions

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a public announcement when the last US cluster munitions have been removed from the UK.

Bill Rammell: The United States has identified the cluster munitions that it holds on United Kingdom territory as exceeding its worldwide operational planning requirements. We expect that all US cluster munitions will be removed from sites in the UK this year and from all UK territories by 2013 (as declared by Baroness Kinnock during the Cluster Munitions (Prohibitions) Bill Second Reading in the House of Lords on the 8 December 2009,  Official Report, column 1020). A statement will be made to confirm the removal of US cluster munitions at that time.

Departmental Data Protection

Angus Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many incidents of the loss of confidential data held by his Department have been reported  (a) in each of the last five years and  (b) in each of the last 12 months.

Bill Rammell: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) takes any attacks on, or misuse of, its information, networks and associated media storage devices very seriously and has robust procedures in place to mitigate against and investigate such occurrences. Furthermore, new processes, instructions and technological aids are continually being implemented to mitigate human errors and raise the awareness of every individual in the Department with regards to cyber security.
	The following tables provide details of the number of reported losses of confidential and personal data centrally reported within the Department from 2005 to 2010. Figures will continue to be adjusted to incorporate subsequent recoveries of items, the reporting of additional losses and subsequent clarification of historic incidents. The following figures reflect the latest data held as of 10 March 2010.
	In a number of these cases the documents were historical and so the original protective marking would have been eligible to be considered for downgrading. This would certainly reduce any risk of compromise. A number of these incidents came to light as a consequence of thorough housekeeping activities and revised MOD data management practices. It is likely that a large number of instances relate to records of the destruction of documents not being accurately maintained, rather than documents actually having gone missing.
	
		
			  Reported incidents of the loss of confidential data in each of the last five years 
			   Total 
			 2005 77 
			 2006 130 
			 2007 52 
			 2008 1099 
			 2009 347 
		
	
	The surge in reported incidents from 2008 is largely attributable to two factors. Firstly, there is an increased awareness of the need to report data loss across the Department. Secondly, since the publication of the Data Handling Review and Burton Report, the MOD is now auditing its holdings of both personal data and removable media. This has identified a number of instances where the location of data could not be verified and has therefore been reported as a possible loss-even though in many cases they may have merely been unaccounted for or incorrectly disposed of.
	
		
			  Reported incidents of the loss of confidential data in each of the last 12 months 
			  Month  Total 
			  2009  
			 March 10 
			 April 34 
			 May 24 
			 June 19 
			 July 20 
			 August 32 
			 September 94 
			 October 25 
			 November 21 
			 December 65 
			   
			  2010  
			 January 23 
			 February 48

Departmental Disciplinary Proceedings

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many  (a) disciplinary and  (b) capability procedures have been (i) initiated and (ii) completed in his Department in each of the last five years; how much time on average was taken to complete each type of procedure in each such year; how many and what proportion of his Department's staff were subject to each type of procedure in each such year; and how many and what proportion of each type of procedure resulted in the dismissal of the member of staff.

Kevan Jones: This information is not held in the format requested. Prior to April 2007 all cases were managed locally and data on the number of cases initiated are not available. Information on average time taken to complete each type of procedure is not recorded, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	In the Ministry of Defence, if an individual's performance is identified as unsatisfactory they may be subject to the Restoring Efficiency process, which involves warning the individual, encouraging improvement, and allowing a reasonable opportunity to improve. If a satisfactory performance is not achieved the individual may be dismissed or downgraded.
	The number of Restoring Efficiency and disciplinary procedures initiated in each financial year and the number of dismissals in the same period-but which might include cases initiated in the previous financial year-was as follows:
	
		
			   Restoring Efficiency  Disciplinary procedures  
			   Initiated  Dismissals  Initiated  Dismissals  Number of civil servants 
			 2004-05 n/k 12 n/k 59 79,900 
			 2005-06 n/k 12 n/k 47 79,700 
			 2006-07 n/k 12 n/k 58 75,800 
			 2007-08 89 4 87 50 71,400 
			 2008-09 92 2 108 60 66,700 
			 n/k = Not known 
		
	
	These figures include staff in MOD agencies but exclude trading funds and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary.
	There is also a range of disciplinary penalties less than dismissal: Reprimand; Restitution; Loss of one, five or 10 day's pay; Downgrading with a ban on promotion for up to three years.

Departmental Lost Property

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what property has been recorded as  (a) lost and  (b) stolen from his Department in the last 12 months; and what estimate has been made of the cost of the replacement of that property.

Bill Rammell: The requested information is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Manpower

Ian Davidson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff of his Department presently employed in Kentigern House in Glasgow are engaged  (a) solely on duties relating to military staff based in Scotland and  (b) on duties relating to (i) military and (ii) civilian staff based (A) elsewhere in the UK and (B) overseas.

Kevan Jones: It has not proved possible to respond to my hon. Friend in the time available before Prorogation.

Departmental Publications

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he plans to place in the Library a copy of the most recent report of the Chief of the General Staff's briefing team.

Bill Rammell: In accordance with the conventions which govern the conduct of government during the pre-election period, the report will be placed in the Library of the House as soon as possible in the next parliamentary term.

Gurkhas

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how often the cross-departmental Gurkha working group has met; and what Government departments are represented on the group;
	(2)  what  (a) written and  (b) other information is provided to Gurkha veterans seeking advice at his Department's resettlement office in Kathmandu, Nepal;
	(3)  what steps his Department is taking to inform the Gurkha veteran population in Nepal of their rights of settlement in the United Kingdom;
	(4)  how much funding is available for his Department's resettlement office in Kathmandu, Nepal in 2010-11.

Kevan Jones: The Cross-Departmental Working Group was set up in June 2009 and has met formally on three occasions, twice in 2009 and once so far this year. As well as the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and the UK Border Agency (UKBA), the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), the Department for Communities and Local Government, (DCLG), the Department of Health, the Department for Children, Schools and Families, the Cabinet Office, the Foreign Office and Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs are members of the Working Group.
	The Working Group has also consulted with a wide range of welfare organisations in the course of its work, including the main Service charities: the Gurkha Welfare Trust; the Royal British Legion; ABF The Soldiers' Charity; the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association; and Veterans Aid.
	The Gurkha Settlement Office in Kathmandu opened in October 2009 and to date has had nearly 5,000 visits from ex-Gurkhas and their families. The Government of Nepal and all ex-service organisations were briefed by MOD about the role of the office which is to provide free help and assistance with the settlement process. This includes information and education about life in the UK in order for the ex-Gurkhas to make an informed choice about settlement, and if they decide to apply for a visa help and advice filling out the visa form, help with finding and completing supporting documentation and a fast tracking system for issuing National Insurance numbers which facilitates claiming benefits in the UK. DCLG are setting up a housing advice centre in the UK to help find appropriate housing and will offer a bond to landlords in lieu of the required rental deposit. The UKBA have also introduced a new stamp on the visa which allows DWP to identify ex-Gurkhas who do not need to satisfy the Habitual Residence Test before benefits can be paid.
	In November 2009 and January this year several hundred ex-Gurkha representatives in Nepal were briefed by a joint MOD/UKBA team about the benefits of using the Kathmandu settlement office. A further communications exercise and additional consultation and briefings are planned in April. It is also intended to forward base some of the settlement office staff from Kathmandu to the east and west of Nepal to try and reach those who might not be able to travel to Kathmandu.
	A booklet in English and Nepali that explains the cost of living in the UK has been produced at the request of the ex-service organisations, and an updated and more comprehensive book about life in the UK will be issued in Nepal in April. The book, developed in association with ex-servicemen, the service charities and local authorities contains a wealth of information about living in the UK.
	To date, the cost of setting up and staffing the Settlement Office is some £20,000 and a similar budget has been earmarked for 2010-11.

Illegal Immigrants

Robert Syms: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff his Department and its agencies have appointed who were later discovered to be illegal immigrants since 2005.

Kevan Jones: People employed to work in Government Departments and their agencies, either directly or through a contractor, are required to satisfy requirements on identity, nationality and immigration status prior to the offer of employment. Only two employees of the MOD have been convicted of being illegal immigrants over the last five years.

Military Aircraft: Operating Costs

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average total operating cost per flight hour for the  (a) Hawk 128 Advanced Jet Trainer,  (b) E-3D Sentry AEW1,  (c) Hercules C-130J,  (d) C-17 Globemaster III and  (e) MQ-9 Reaper was in the latest period for which figures are available.

Bill Rammell: The average operating cost per hour for E-3D Sentry, Hercules C-130J, and C-17 Globemaster, for financial year 2009-10, is provided in the following table. The cost includes forward and depth servicing, fuel, crew and training costs and the cost of capital charge, depreciation and other overheads.
	
		
			  Aircraft  Approx cost (£ per hour) 
			 E-3D Sentry AEW1 33,000 
			 Hercules C-130J 12,000 
			 C-17 Globemaster III 42,000 
		
	
	The Hawk 128 Advanced Jet Trainer is in the process of being introduced into service and has only flown 450 hours in FY 2009-10. A mature estimate of flying hour costs will only be available once it is fully in-service which is not expected until 2012-13.
	The average operating cost per hour for the Reaper Urgent Operational Requirement is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

Nimrod Aircraft

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will set out details of the transitional arrangements to provide  (a) a long range maritime search and rescue capability and  (b) a long range anti-submarine warfare capability between the time the Nimrod MR2 was withdrawn from service and the entering into full operational capability of the Nimrod MRA4; and how long he expects that transitional period to last.

Bill Rammell: holding answer 7 April 2010
	 The Nimrod MR2 provided a state-of-the-art Long Range Search and Rescue (LR SAR) capability. The Nimrod MRA4 will bring a substantially more capable aircraft into the RAF's fleet.
	In the period of transition until the MRA4 achieves its initial operating capability, we intend to make every effort to ensure that we are able to provide a response to the most serious SAR incidents, using other assets, as available, in the long-range search and rescue role. No specific aircraft has been allocated to the LR SAR task; our response to any particular SAR incident will be dependent on aircraft and crew availability, taking account of other high priority operational tasks.
	Nimrod MRA4 deliveries began in March this year and initial operating capability, including for LR SAR operations, is planned to be achieved by October 2012, with some ad hoc capability available before that date.
	I cannot comment on long range anti-submarine warfare capability for reasons of national security.

Opposition

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether his Department has undertaken costings of the policies of the  (a) Conservative Party and  (b) Liberal Democrat Party at the request of Ministers or special advisers in the last 36 months.

Bill Rammell: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury on 30 March 2010,  Official Report, column 1044W.

RFA Darkdale

Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  if he will take steps to remove the fuel, oil and ammunition from RFA Darkdale after its sinking in James Bay, St Helena; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  if he will ensure that RFA Black Rover during its visit to St Helena in May  (a) provides oil spill equipment to deal with oil leaks from the sunken RFA Darkdale and  (b) assists with clean-up operations; and if he will make a statement.

Quentin Davies: The Ministry of Defence is working with other Government Departments to assess the options following the recent oil leak from the former Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel Darkdale which sank during World War II. A full survey of the wreck will be required to determine whether the removal of fuel, oil and ammunition is the most appropriate course of action. Before the survey work can begin, a risk assessment is being carried out based on current knowledge of Darkdale and the recent oil leak. This will determine the nature and degree of risk involved in carrying out the full survey.
	The Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel Black Rover is neither suitably equipped nor has suitably qualified crew members to assist with any operation to clean up the recent oil leak, which is specialised work. However, depending on the outcome of the aforementioned risk assessment, Black Rover may be used to transport a survey team and specialist equipment to St. Helena.

Territorial Army: Northern Ireland

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Territorial Army recruits in Northern Ireland have been waiting to commence phase one recruit training since September 2009; and when it is expected they will all have received such training.

Bill Rammell: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Territorial Army: Northern Ireland

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons Territorial Army potential officer training was transferred from the Regional Training Centre in Ballykinler to Queen's University.

Bill Rammell: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

OLYMPICS

Departmental Written Questions

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what methodology her Office used to determine whether answers to Questions in the formulation if she will set out with statistical information related as directly as possible to the tabling hon. Members' constituency the effects on that constituency of her Department's policies since 1997 could be provided without incurring disproportionate cost; and if she will make a statement.

Tessa Jowell: The Government Olympic Executive seeks to answer all parliamentary questions that do not incur disproportionate cost. Disproportionate cost is determined via a disproportionate cost threshold (DCT). The current DCT is £800, announced in Parliament by HM Treasury on the 20 January 2010.

Olympic Games 2012: Construction

Charlotte Atkins: To ask the Minister for the Olympics what the cost was of building the freight facility at the main Olympic site.

Tessa Jowell: The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) has constructed a temporary wharf on the Waterworks River for the construction phase of the programme to provide contractors with the opportunity to move material into and out of the Park by water. The construction cost of this is £1.86 million (excluding VAT), This figure includes the costs of the pontoons, moorings, pilings, hard-standing, vehicle access and river wall protection.

Olympic Games 2012: Voluntary Work

Tom Levitt: To ask the Minister for the Olympics if she will take steps to reduce the minimum age for Olympic volunteers from 18 to 16 years.

Tessa Jowell: The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games Limited (LOCOG) is responsible for the London 2012 Volunteer Programme, to provide up to 70,000 volunteers for the Games. LOCOG has set the lower age limit for the programme at 18 after considering extensive legal advice and practical operational constraints at games-time, which include: the number of hours under 18s can legally work; the associated management to comply with the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006; and, the commitment of volunteers to undertake a set number of shifts that can finish late at night.
	LOCOG's Get Set education programme provides an excellent route for those under 18 to get involved in 2012-inspired activity, as do Inspire Mark projects and London 2012 Open Weekend events held in communities across the UK.

HEALTH

Abortion

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many repeat abortions women aged  (a) under 20,  (b) 20 to 24,  (c) 25 to 29,  (d) 30 to 34 and  (e) 35 years old and over had in each area contained in current strategic health authority region boundaries in each of the last 10 years.

Gillian Merron: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave her on 8 March 2010,  Official Report, column 51W. The information requested was placed in the Library on 18 March 2010.

Burnley Hospital

Kitty Ussher: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on providing building and services at Burnley General Hospital in  (a) capital and  (b) revenue terms in each of the last 10 years; and how much is projected to be spent in each such category in each of the next five years.

Mike O'Brien: The information is not available in the format requested. However, capital expenditure on buildings and dwellings for the East Lancashire Hospitals Trust (which includes Burnley General Hospital) for the years 2002-03 to 2008-09 is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  £000 
			   Tangible fixed assets-Purchased additions 
			   Buildings excluding dwellings  Dwellings 
			 2008-09 5,472 141 
			 2007-08 8,305 0 
			 2006-07 7,081 0 
			 2005-06 5,195 0 
			 2004-05 3,922 0 
			 2003-04 4,350 0 
			 2002-03 2,246 0 
		
	
	The forecast total capital expenditure outturn for the whole trust for 2009-10 is £22.3 million, of which £12.5 million is expected to be spent on buildings (excluding dwellings).
	Information on revenue expenditure in respect of premises costs for the East Lancashire Hospitals Trust from 2002-03 to 2008-09 for the trust is shown in the following table:
	
		
			   Operating expenses-premises (£000) 
			 2008-09 26,191 
			 2007-08 23,989 
			 2006-07 21,995 
			 2005-06 12,443 
			 2004-05 6,667 
			 2003-04 7,568 
			 2002-03 7,891 
			  Notes:  1. The Department only holds accounting data at organisation level for seven years, therefore 2002-03 is the earliest information available.  2. The operating expenses represent the amounts included in the operating expenses of East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust for premises between 2002-03 and 2008-09.  3. East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust was operational from 1 April 2003, therefore the 2002-03 figures are the aggregate of its two predecessor bodies-Blackburn, Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Health Care NHS Trust and Burnley Health Care NHS Trust.  4. In the audited summarisation schedules, premises includes expenditure on utilities (such as electricity and gas), other fuels, water and sewerage, external general services and contracts, furniture, office and computer equipment, computer hardware and maintenance contracts, business rates, rent, building and engineering equipment and contracts.   Source:  2002-03 to 2008-09 figures-NHS Trusts Audited Summarisation Schedules 2002-03 to 2008-09.

Cervical Cancer

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what guidance he has issued to primary care trusts on the use of full pelvic examinations in cases of suspected cervical cancer;
	(2)  what research his Department has  (a) commissioned and  (b) undertaken on the detection and diagnosis of cervical cancer (i) in general and (ii) among those aged between 20 and 24 years in the last 12 months.

Ann Keen: Clinical Practice Guidance for the Assessment of Young Women aged 20-24 with Abnormal Vaginal Bleeding was issued through the Department of Health's GP and Practice Team Bulletin and Chief Nursing Officer's Bulletin in March 2010. The guidance, developed by the independent Advisory Committee on Cervical Screening (ACCS), re-emphasises the importance of pelvic examinations in young women with abnormal vaginal bleeding and provides primary care practitioners with an easy to follow algorithm to help in their management of these young women. A copy of the guidance has been placed in the Library.
	Regarding research on the detection and diagnosis of cervical cancer in general and among those aged between 20 and 24 years in the last 12 months, NHS Cancer Screening Programmes provided funding of £52,000 in 2009-10 to Cancer Research UK on the ongoing audit of invasive cervical cancers. This included funding for specially commissioned work on younger women to inform the ACCS review of cervical screening in May 2009.
	In addition, in autumn 2009 the Department commissioned the What Women Know survey to assess the current levels of knowledge about cervical cancer among women in England. The survey was carried out as part of an initiative in collaboration with the Eve Appeal and University College London's Health Behaviour Research Centre. It covered awareness of the symptoms and risk factors for cervical cancer, knowledge of the cervical screening and human papillomavirus vaccination programmes, anticipated barriers to seeking medical help with a possible cervical cancer symptom, and beliefs about screening and other protective behaviours.
	The Department has also provided £4,000 to Jo's Trust, a charity that raises awareness of cervical cancer, to undertake a pilot to assess the potential for using television advertisements in general practitioner surgeries to improve uptake of cervical screening invitations.

Depressive Illnesses: Health Services

Margaret Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which primary care trusts provide services for clinical depression; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Hope: We do not collect these data centrally. The provision of local health services is a decision for primary care trusts and their strategic health authorities. Clinicians are best placed to decide what services their local communities need and how they are provided.

E Coli

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much his Department has spent on reducing the chances of an E. coli outbreak in the last three years.

Gillian Merron: As humans may be infected by  E. coli O157 through a variety of routes there are several different Government Departments that contribute to reducing the chances of an outbreak. Humans may become infected when they consume contaminated food or water, by direct or indirect contact with animals that carry  E. coli O157 or from exposure to an environment contaminated with animals' faeces, such as farms and similar premises with animals which are open to the public.
	The costs of reducing the chances of both foodborne and non-foodborne  E. coli O157 outbreaks are contained within the core budgets of the Department of Health, Food Standards Agency (FSA) and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and are not separately identifiable. For example, the FSA does not collect data on the amount of spend that can be assigned to  E. coli official controls in isolation from other official controls on the microbiological safety of food. In addition to core funding, both DEFRA and the FSA fund research to enhance our understanding of human infection caused by  E. coli O157.

General Practitioners: Denton

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many GPs were practising in Denton and Reddish constituency in (i) 1997 and (ii) the most recent year for which figures are available.

Mike O'Brien: The data requested are not available in the format required. However, information on the number of general practitioners (GPs) (excluding retainers and registrars) between 2002-09 at Stockport Primary Care Trust (PCT) and Tameside and Glossop PCT is shown in the following table:
	
		
			   2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008  2009 
			 Stockport PCT 170 177 182 186 190 195 195 
			 Tameside and Glossop PCT 120 117 124 131 134 128 145 
			 Total specified organisations 290 294 306 317 324 323 340 
			  Notes: 1. GP data are not available at constituency level. Denton and Reddish constituency is contained within and serviced by Stockport PCT and Tameside and Glossop PCT. 2. Prior to 2002, PCTs did not exist. It is not possible to map these organisations back prior to 2002 with any degree of accuracy. 3. Data as at 30 September for each year. 4. The Information Centre for health and social care seeks to minimise inaccuracies and the effect of missing and invalid data but responsibility for data accuracy lies with the organisations providing the data. Methods are continually being updated to improve data quality where changes impact on figures already published. This is assessed but unless it is significant at national level figures are not changed. Impact at detailed or local level is footnoted in relevant analyses.  Source: Information Centre for health and social care - General and Personal Medical Services Statistics.

Health Services: Prisoners

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the oral answer to the hon. Member for Isle of Wight on 4 November 2009. what steps have been taken to ensure that local health authorities are reimbursed for the additional costs of guarding prisoners who require health care outside prison.

Phil Hope: There have been no recent changes to the funding responsibilities of national health service primary care trusts (PCTs) for their prison health care escorts and bedwatches activity.
	Responsibility for commissioning health services in publicly run prisons in England has been fully devolved to NHS PCTs since 2006, with significantly increased funding. Subsequently, the responsibility and funding for escorts and bedwatch costs transferred from HM Prison Service to PCTs in April 2008.
	This decision followed the outcome of a 12-month audit of prison health care escorts and bedwatches activity in all prisons in England and Wales, and a pilot in 10 prisons of options for future funding and management of escorts and bedwatches.
	Escorts and bedwatches costs are determined by a fixed tariff previously agreed by HM Prison Service and the NHS. Baseline funding is provided for within the NHS bundle, which is the Department's mechanism for the distribution of core funding to strategic health authorities.

Hospitals: Infectious Diseases

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients have contracted  (a) MRSA and  (b) other hospital-acquired infections in NHS hospitals in Shropshire in the last five years.

Ann Keen: Information on all healthcare associated infections (HCAIs) is not collected centrally. The mandatory surveillance system collects data on the following from acute trusts only: methicillin-resistant  Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemias;  Clostridium difficile infections (CDIs); glycopeptide-resistant enterococci bacteraemias (GREs); and selected orthopaedic surgical site infections (SSIs).
	Surveillance data, including monthly MRSA and CDI information, are available on the Health Protection Agency's (HPA) website at:
	www.hpa.org.uk/web/HPAwebHPAwebStandard/HPAweb_C/1244763936373
	Information on MRSA, for the time period requested, is shown in the following table. All cases of MRSA bacteraemia are reported, meaning that the reports include infections both acquired in hospital and elsewhere.
	
		
			   Financial year 
			  Trust  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  Five-year total 
			 Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust 2 0 2 0 0 4 
			 Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust 47 39 49 35 16 186 
			 Total 49 39 51 35 16 190 
			  Note: Data include infections, which may have been acquired in the community.  Source: HPA 
		
	
	Up to 2007, cases of CDI in people aged 65 or over were reported. This information for the time period requested, is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Financial year 
			  Trust  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09  Five-year total 
			 Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust 8 11 10 4 (4) 6 (6) 39 
			 Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust 246 203 336 314 (174) 189 (76) 1,288 
			 Total 254 214 346 318 (178) 195 (82) 1,327 
			  Note: Total number of reports given; figures in parentheses are 'Trust apportioned' cases (presumed to be hospital acquired).  Source: HPA. 
		
	
	From 2007-08, CDI cases in those aged two or over were reported, plus those presumed to be hospital acquired (trust apportioned) were identified. This information for the time period requested, is shown in the following table
	
		
			   Financial year 
			  Trust  2007-08  2008-09  Two-year total 
			 Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust 8 6 14 
			 Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust 208 94 302 
			 Total 216 100 316 
			  Note: The figures presented are 'Trust apportioned', referring to infections that are presumed to be hospital acquired.  Source: HPA. 
		
	
	Information on GRE bacteraemias, for the time period requested, is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Year( 1) 
			  Trust  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07 
			 Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust 0 0 0 
			 Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust 7 6 3 
			 Total 7 6 3 
			 (1) Data from 1 October to 30 September. The trusts did not submit data for 2007-08, and 2008-09 data are not yet published.  Source: HPA. Information on SSIs, from 2004-09, is available on the HPA's website at: www.hpa.org.uk/webc/HPAwebFile/HPAweb_C/1259151994683

Hospitals: Patients

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients of each ethnicity there were in  (a) Arnold Lodge,  (b) Ashworth Hospital,  (c) Auckland Park Hospital,  (d) Barnsley Hall Hospital,  (e) Barnwood House Hospital,  (f) Bedford Lunatic Asylum,  (g) Bethlem Royal Hospital,  (h) Bootham Park Hospital,  (i) Broadmoor Hospital,  (j) Brookwood Hospital,  (k) Bushey Fields Hospital,  (l) Central Hospital, Hatton,  (m) Cheadle Royal Hospital,  (n) Colney Hatch Lunatic Asylum,  (o) Earls House Hospital,  (p) Epsom Cluster,  (q) Fairfield Hospital (Arlesey),  (r) Fulbourn Hospital,  (s) Haleacre Unit,  (t) Hampshire County Lunatic Asylum,  (u) Hanwell Asylum,  (v) Hellingly Hospital,  (w) Holloway Sanatorium,  (x) Leavesden Mental Hospital,  (y) Long Grove Hospital,  (z) Longview Psychiatric Unit,  (aa) Loring Hall,  (bb) Manchester Royal Lunatic Asylum,  (cc) Mary Dendy Hospital,  (dd) Maudsley Hospital,  (ee) Michael Rutter Centre for Children and Adolescents,  (ff) Napsbury,  (gg) Northfield Hospital,  (hh) Northgate Hospital,  (ii) Oakwood Hospital,  (jj) Park Prewett,  (kk) Powick Hospital,  (ll) Rampton Secure Hospital,  (mm) The Retreat,  (nn) Royal Earlswood Hospital,  (oo) St. Andrew's Hospital,  (pp) St. Ann's Hospital,  (qq) St. Ann's Hospital (Dorset),  (rr) St. Crispins Hospital,  (ss) St. Luke's Hospital (Middlesbrough),  (tt) St. Michael's Hospital (Warwick),  (uu) Severalls Hospital,  (vv) Springfield Hospital,  (ww) Stone House Hospital,  (xx) Tindal Centre,  (yy) Warlingham Park Hospital,  (zz) Warneford Hospital,  (aaa) West London Mental Health NHS Trust,  (bbb) West Park Asylum and  (ccc) Winterton Hospital as at 1 March 2010.

Phil Hope: This information is not held centrally. National Information about the ethnicity of mental health in-patients is collected and published by the Care Quality Commission through its Count Me In census programme.

Tuberculosis: Screening

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what steps his Department has taken to ensure the effectiveness of tuberculosis screening programmes of incoming visitors at  (a) Heathrow and  (b) Gatwick airports;
	(2)  how many qualified medical staff are employed at each UK airport for the purpose of screening incoming visitors for tuberculosis;
	(3)  how much his Department has spent on the provision of  (a) x-ray equipment for tuberculosis screening at UK airports and  (b) salaries of staff conducting such screening in each year since 2004.

Gillian Merron: The Department has provided capital funding of £8 million for the Health Protection Agency (HPA) to install new digital x-ray machines at Gatwick and Heathrow to replace the old ones in a phased programme across 2008-09. These have been installed and are fully functioning.
	In addition, an electronic notification system for results of screening is being piloted across the country to replace the paper notification system.
	Medical inspectors are employed at two airports (Gatwick and Heathrow) for the purposes of tuberculosis (TB) screening. At Heathrow there are currently 4.8 permanent whole-time equivalent (WTE) plus locum staff (approximately 1.5 further WTE). At Gatwick, there are two WTE plus one WTE locum staff. At other airports, the medical inspection function is fulfilled on a part-time contract basis.
	Funding for medical inspection function since 2004 has been provided by primary care trusts and the HPA under various local arrangements, some in partnership with local authorities. Details of such funding, and staff deployment, are not collected centrally.

ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Fuel Poverty

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change when he expects figures to be available on the level of fuel poverty in the UK in 2008.

David Kidney: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Lichfield (Michael Fabricant) earlier today.

Carbon Emissions: Advertising

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what procedures his Department has put in place to evaluate the effectiveness of the Act on Carbon Dioxide advertising campaign; and if he will make a statement.

Joan Ruddock: holding answer 23 March 2010
	The Act On CO2 advertising campaign is designed to encourage individuals to make the changes in behaviour necessary to reduce carbon emissions, and mitigate the effects of climate change. The Department evaluates the campaign using a range of measures: Pre and post campaign omnibus surveys to assess shifts in awareness, attitudes and claimed behaviour; number of website visits, indicating the degree to which the campaign has generated a desire among the public to find out more; click-through rates from online display advertisements; where applicable, number of telephone calls generated; number of visits to the Act On CO2 carbon calculator and assessment from third party partners of the success of the campaign.

Climate Change: International Cooperation

Richard Younger-Ross: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of the UK's participation in the Copenhagen climate change summit.

Joan Ruddock: I refer the hon. Member to the answers I gave to the hon. Member for East Antrim (Sammy Wilson) on 7 January 2010,  Official Report, columns 630-31W, and the hon. Member for Angus (Mr. Weir) on 21 January 2010,  Official Report, column 468W.
	Since 1999 the Government have published on an annual basis a list of all overseas visits by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500, as well as the total cost of all ministerial travel overseas. From 2007-08 the list was extended to include all Ministers. The list also provides information on the number of officials who accompany Ministers. Copies are available in the Libraries of the House. Information for 2009-10 will be published as soon as the information is available.

Electricity Generation

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the additional electricity generating capacity required by 2020.

David Kidney: Under central modelling assumptions, it is estimated we will need about 43 gigawatts (GW) net of new electricity generation capacity by 2020.

Electricity Generation

Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the additional electricity generating capacity required by 2020.

David Kidney: In addition to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Blaby (Mr. Robathan) earlier today, taking into account planned closures of existing power plants and other factors such as the renewables targets, modelling suggests we might need around 100 GW of total capacity in 2020. In a typical year now peak consumption will be around 60 GW and total available supply around 80 GW.

Electricity Generation

David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what estimate he has made of the additional electricity generating capacity required by 2020.

David Kidney: Under central modelling assumptions, it is estimated we will need about 43 gigawatts (GW) net of new electricity generation capacity by 2020.

Environment Protection: West Midlands

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change what assistance the EU has provided to the West Midlands for the development of green  (a) technologies and  (b) jobs in the last two years.

Ian Lucas: I have been asked to reply.
	The following projects have been approved to date under Priority Axis 1 of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) 2007-13 programme which supports Innovation and Research and Development. The programme is administered in the West Midlands by Advantage West Midlands.
	Energy Efficiency-£4.94 million
	Low Carbon Vehicle Technology-£9.50 million (This project is expected to safeguard 2,150 jobs)
	A number of general innovation/R and D support projects (including Knowledge Transfer Partnerships) have also been supported some of which include a focus on green technologies and jobs. Funding of over £15 million has been approved to date.
	Under Priority Axis 2 of the 2007-13 ERDF programme which focuses on stimulating enterprise development the following projects have been approved to date:
	Competitiveness through Collaboration-£184,315 for an Environmental Technologies Supply Chain Network for the rural west of the region.
	West Midlands Industrial Symbiosis Network-£1,054,302 to develop links between companies so that under-used resources such as energy, water and/or materials from one are recovered, reprocessed and then re-used by others. The project is expected to create 40 jobs and safeguard 82.
	Rethink Energy-£1,005,335 funding to support Small to Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs) to undertake feasibility studies and install renewable energy technologies. The project is expected to create an additional 12 jobs.
	Enviro Supply chain network-£283,306 to encourage manufacturing SMEs to work together to improve environmental processes. The project is expected to create 15 jobs.
	Further funding has also been provided for other projects which support business development or innovation which will include support to those involved in green technologies.
	Under the EU-funded Rural Development Programme for England (RPDE) programme the following projects which support green technologies and jobs have been approved so far in the 2007-13 programming period:
	Certainly Wood-£403,000 approved for capital equipment support to a wood fuel business.
	Freshfields Fruit LLP-£265,000 approved for capital equipment support to a strawberry growing business for water harvesting and recycling.
	West Midlands Woodfuel Project-£827,000 approved for revenue support to West Midlands forestry wood fuel businesses.
	It is not possible to report on jobs created or safeguarded by these projects at this stage.
	There are also a number of RDPE initiatives supporting farm diversification and rural enterprises which may support green technologies and jobs.
	Further support will be provided during the later stages of the programmes.
	No specific indicators were set for green jobs or technologies in the West Midlands 2000-06 Objective 2 Programme. A total of 2,769 businesses were, however, assisted with environmental management as part of the Programme's Environmental Sustainability theme.

Opposition

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether his Department has undertaken costings of the policies of the  (a) Conservative Party and  (b) Liberal Democrat Party at the request of Ministers or special advisers since its inception.

David Kidney: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to him by my right hon. Friend the Exchequer Secretary on 30 March 2010,  Official Report, column 1913W.

Public Buildings: Energy

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change whether there are mechanisms in place to assist the provision of energy efficiency measures and equipment in  (a) community centres,  (b) public halls,  (c) social clubs and  (d) other community facilities; and what recent representations he has received from community representatives on those matters.

Joan Ruddock: The Low Carbon Communities Challenge (LCCC) is a two-year research programme funded by DECC providing financial and practical support to 22 test-bed communities in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The purpose of the challenge is to test delivery options for achieving ambitious cuts in carbon emissions at community level.
	Communities selected will be providing energy efficiency improvements to public buildings, including community centres and schools. The LCCC will provide replicable models of what works at a community level, which can inform future Government policy and inspire action in other communities across the country.
	The Department receives a variety of correspondence relating to energy efficiency matters.

Warm Front Scheme

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Peterborough of 3 March 2010, Official Report, column 1205W, on energy: housing, what the cost of the Warm Front pilots cited in the Answer has been to date.

David Kidney: The following table shows the total spend to date on Warm Front pilots including Solar Thermal and Air Source Heat Pumps(1).
	
		
			  Pilot  Cost excluding VAT  (£) 
			 Solar thermal 285,171.54 
			 Air source heat pumps 140,396.00 
			 Total 425,567.54 
		
	
	At the present time, there has been no money spent on the pilot for the external wall insulation of park homes as work is being planned with customers but has yet to be installed.
	(1) To 21 March 2010

HOME DEPARTMENT

Crimes of Violence

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) most,  (b) less and  (c) summary violent offences were recorded in each police force area in each year since 2002-03; and how many people were convicted of violent offences of each type in each of those years.

Alan Johnson: holding answer 1 March 2010
	Information is not available in the requested format. The available information relates to offences of violence against the person with and without injury and is given in Tables 1 and 2. Summary offences of assault without injury are included within the violence against the person without injury grouping. Summary offences without injury are assault without injury on a constable, assault without injury, and racially or religiously aggravated assault without injury. Separate figures for these offences are given in Table 3.
	These police recorded crime data relate to the number of offences recorded in each financial year.
	In April 2002, the National Crime Recording Standard (NCRS) was introduced. This brought in a more victim-focused reporting system, where victim accounts had to be accepted unless there was credible evidence to the contrary. It took some forces several years to adjust to the new recording practice, meaning that comparisons from 2002-03 to 2008-09 should be treated with caution.
	Home Office statisticians advise that the British Crime Survey (BCS) is the best guide to long-term trends for the crime types it covers because it has a consistent methodology and is unaffected by levels of reporting or police recording. However, the BCS is not designed to provide robust estimates of different crimes at police force area.
	Annual BCS figures are estimates based on data from the interviews carried out in the previous 12 months. Estimates for the violent crimes covered by the survey show a 22 per cent. fall in England and Wales from 2002-03 to 2008-09. Over the same period, police recorded crime figures show a 7 per cent. increase in violence against the person offences.
	Conviction data have been provided by the Ministry of Justice and relate to the number of offenders. These data are published on a calendar year basis and are counts of persons classified by their principal offence.
	As the data come from different sources and are reported on different periods, the two datasets are not comparable.
	Information on the offenders dealt with by the Criminal Justice System does not necessarily reflect wider trends for characteristics of perpetrators of crimes, where often an offender will not be apprehended.
	The number of persons found guilty at all courts in England and Wales for offences of violence against the person, by type and police force area, from 2002 to 2008 (latest available), can be viewed in the Tables 4, 5, and 6.
	Court proceedings data for 2009 are planned for publication in autumn 2010.
	
		
			  Table 1: Recorded offences of violence against the person with injury, 2002-03 to 2008-09 
			  Police f orce  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Avon and Somerset 8,586 12,371 14,097 13,699 13,294 13,061 11,492 
			 Bedfordshire 4,431 5,026 5,618 5,614 5,113 4,446 4,085 
			 British Transport Police 2,231 2,850 3,242 3,517 2,841 2,562 2,529 
			 Cambridgeshire 4,038 6,144 6,195 5,201 4,848 4,523 4,692 
			 Cheshire 4,127 4,516 5,455 11,169 9,125 7,676 6,925 
			 Cleveland 2,702 3,879 6,711 7,354 6,115 5,468 4,922 
			 Cumbria 3,046 3,728 4,994 4,670 4,167 3,836 3,270 
			 Derbyshire 10,160 11,434 12,014 11,441 11,009 10,933 8,734 
			 Devon and Cornwall 13,471 14,577 15,568 14,075 13,211 12,246 11,088 
			 Dorset 2,713 4,304 5,194 5,872 5,146 4,692 5,010 
			 Durham 2,344 2,343 2,675 5,557 5,191 4,775 3,679 
			 Dyfed-Powys 3,178 4,209 4,143 3,842 3,592 2,880 2,672 
			 Essex 12,539 13,977 13,569 13,254 11,953 10,861 9,628 
			 Gloucestershire 2,841 4,288 5,359 5,251 4,575 3,734 3,471 
			 Greater Manchester 30,712 33,196 29,710 27,988 27,580 23,858 22,424 
			 Gwent 6,972 6,621 7,087 7,101 6,655 6,013 5,823 
			 Hampshire 7,339 11,607 14,369 13,427 14,728 15,393 15,152 
			 Hertfordshire 3,312 4,882 8,494 7,706 7,064 5,496 4,963 
			 Humberside 9,257 12,704 12,975 13,230 12,870 9,089 8,727 
			 Kent 8,048 9,899 12,870 14,801 14,360 12,721 11,961 
			 Lancashire 8,499 14,950 15,666 15,026 13,953 13,228 12,105 
			 Leicestershire 5,682 7,106 9,597 9,390 9,135 8,617 7,837 
			 Lincolnshire 4,889 5,709 5,804 5,295 4,566 3,958 3,856 
			 London, City of 298 286 298 263 273 351 343 
			 Merseyside 12,719 16,783 18,573 17,028 13,098 9,798 8,214 
			 Metropolitan Police 44,387 45,151 71,958 86,020 79,698 73,302 71,462 
			 Norfolk 4,309 5,565 5,838 5,871 5,229 4,577 3,773 
			 Northamptonshire 5,127 7,010 6,571 6,694 5,752 5,418 4,857 
			 Northumbria 7,910 15,169 14,067 12,773 13,358 11,033 10,488 
			 North Wales 6,377 6,498 6,948 6,505 5,630 4,204 4,315 
			 North Yorkshire 2,012 3,245 6,546 6,352 5,512 4,448 4,324 
			 Nottinghamshire 10,659 12,076 12,755 14,538 13,049 10,985 11,814 
			 South Wales 10,657 11,123 10,568 11,835 10,387 10,442 10,104 
			 South Yorkshire 5,024 5,605 7,180 16,212 16,730 14,699 12,643 
			 Staffordshire 9,805 12,449 13,290 12,597 12,224 9,731 9,733 
			 Suffolk 3,677 4,596 5,075 5,102 4,631 3,902 4,008 
			 Surrey 4,636 4,985 5,288 5,913 5,317 5,128 4,586 
			 Sussex 6,097 12,008 14,439 13,371 12,140 9,862 8,355 
			 Thames Valley 10,771 12,699 15,561 15,619 14,765 14,180 14,547 
			 Warwickshire 2,232 4,111 3,753 3,936 3,809 3,746 3,044 
			 West Mercia 10,142 11,079 10,483 9,601 9,165 8,538 7,722 
			 West Midlands 32,443 35,760 34,842 36,465 36,579 33,216 29,575 
			 West Yorkshire 18,366 27,432 25,997 27,813 22,991 20,214 18,216 
			 Wiltshire 3,359 3,872 3,830 4,617 5,166 4,478 3,797 
			 
			 England and Wales 372,124 457,822 515,266 543,605 506,594 452,318 420,965 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Recorded offences of violence against the person without injury, 2002-03 to 2008-09 
			  Police force  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Avon and Somerset 12,153 14,159 17,365 16,797 17,587 14,086 15,101 
			 Bedfordshire 3,667 3,781 4,519 4,192 4,026 3,153 3,166 
			 British Transport Police 7,945 8,632 9,872 10,864 13,291 12,963 12,971 
			 Cambridgeshire 8,536 7,519 7,163 4,957 5,573 5,773 5,224 
			 Cheshire 6,575 9,558 10,153 7,348 8,144 7,428 7,244 
			 Cleveland 3,580 5,320 4,941 6,958 7,813 7,447 5,740 
			 Cumbria 2,679 3,146 4,201 4,536 4,020 4,219 3,843 
			 Derbyshire 5,253 4,963 4,570 4,519 5,056 5,796 5,625 
			 Devon and Cornwall 10,249 11,392 12,767 11,230 11,551 10,893 9,936 
			 Dorset 5,436 4,843 5,556 6,058 6,659 6,425 5,430 
			 Durham 5,367 4,222 4,352 4,342 4,826 3,850 3,756 
			 Dyfed-Powys 3,039 3,700 4,172 3,869 4,102 3,076 2,998 
			 Essex 9,551 12,033 11,792 10,626 10,870 12,284 12,246 
			 Gloucestershire 4,893 4,015 4,190 5,245 6,256 5,572 5,083 
			 Greater Manchester 17,892 20,776 23,498 24,960 29,471 26,430 23,605 
			 Gwent 8,047 6,310 5,805 4,402 5,062 4,185 3,583 
			 Hampshire 14,832 23,541 23,804 25,259 25,841 23,635 20,460 
			 Hertfordshire 4,356 7,474 8,351 8,500 9,826 7,852 7,140 
			 Humberside 7,201 12,613 11,215 9,285 10,999 10,269 9,334 
			 Kent 10,310 10,613 9,987 12,011 13,194 12,470 12,141 
			 Lancashire 7,285 11,725 15,918 13,815 12,838 11,784 11,097 
			 Leicestershire 9,822 10,487 11,973 11,610 11,270 10,162 10,682 
			 Lincolnshire 4,349 4,439 5,052 5,431 5,691 5,444 5,058 
			 London, City of 630 563 693 679 694 583 510 
			 Merseyside 9,975 9,663 15,605 17,769 12,896 10,930 10,801 
			 Metropolitan Police 134,395 141,036 129,965 111,242 102,656 99,428 102,949 
			 Norfolk 6,298 6,021 7,082 6,633 6,353 5,349 4,901 
			 Northamptonshire 4,681 4,060 4,590 3,798 4,361 5,194 4,618 
			 Northumbria 17,261 9,628 8,791 9,222 10,891 8,512 8,659 
			 North Wales 5,095 4,481 5,073 5,825 8,793 6,904 6,840 
			 North Yorkshire 6,096 6,365 5,499 5,121 4,575 5,024 3,812 
			 Nottinghamshire 5,300 6,555 7,002 6,778 8,889 8,851 7,796 
			 South Wales 9,769 10,072 9,539 9,213 9,446 11,671 11,074 
			 South Yorkshire 7,264 7,894 14,033 12,963 11,225 9,754 7,985 
			 Staffordshire 10,385 10,325 10,291 11,630 12,504 10,069 10,046 
			 Suffolk 4,272 4,933 5,272 4,915 5,559 5,511 5,422 
			 Surrey 3,879 4,668 5,378 5,325 8,206 8,957 8,262 
			 Sussex 12,026 7,492 12,654 14,496 16,484 15,220 11,911 
			 Thames Valley 14,555 15,889 18,662 20,368 26,657 28,101 26,269 
			 Warwickshire 3,455 2,755 2,738 2,633 3,577 3,780 2,931 
			 West Mercia 9,706 10,788 7,696 6,098 6,845 7,161 7,077 
			 West Midlands 19,351 20,095 20,264 20,521 21,211 20,119 18,647 
			 West Yorkshire 12,484 18,432 18,612 21,064 20,275 18,803 16,370 
			 Wiltshire 3,060 2,430 2,174 2,871 3,510 3,664 4,134 
			 
			 England and Wales 472,954 509,406 532,829 515,978 539,573 508,781 482,477 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Recorded summary offences of assault without injury, 2002 - 03 to 2008 - 09( 1,2) 
			  Police force  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05  2005-06  2006-07  2007-08  2008-09 
			 Avon and Somerset 6,258 6,458 8,269 7,812 8,536 7,169 7,407 
			 Bedfordshire 2,021 1,781 1,845 1,787 1,866 1,321 1,512 
			 British Transport Police 3,668 3,934 4,315 4,316 4,631 3,996 3,936 
			 Cambridgeshire 4,847 3,607 3,590 2,252 2,828 3,224 2,907 
			 Cheshire 4,776 7,374 7,147 3,381 4,195 4,463 4,058 
			 Cleveland 2,440 3,969 2,558 3,282 3,416 3,784 3,283 
			 Cumbria 1,448 1,528 1,900 1,946 1,830 2,114 1,646 
			 Derbyshire 2,515 1,962 1,403 1,398 1,721 2,043 2,753 
			 Devon and Cornwall 6,130 7,213 7,880 5,788 5,586 5,325 5,291 
			 Dorset 3,977 3,050 2,491 2,566 2,892 3,193 2,864 
			 Durham 3,560 2,490 2,471 1,750 1,733 1,304 1,533 
			 Dyfed-Powys 942 1,557 1,896 1,439 1,660 1,337 1,189 
			 Essex 4,057 4,628 3,765 3,393 3,779 5,281 5,720 
			 Gloucestershire 3,333 2,512 2,197 2,236 2,927 2,804 2,933 
			 Greater Manchester 7,952 8,261 7,237 7,075 9,071 9,352 9,668 
			 Gwent 2,308 1,774 1,395 892 837 780 508 
			 Hampshire 9,768 13,016 10,883 11,589 11,759 11,334 10,891 
			 Hertfordshire 2,538 4,477 4,140 3,972 4,204 3,995 3,640 
			 Humberside 3,436 4,161 4,909 3,989 4,580 3,577 3,643 
			 Kent 6,998 6,984 5,928 6,849 7,805 7,738 7,251 
			 Lancashire 3,748 6,512 7,794 6,467 6,110 6,241 6,348 
			 Leicestershire 6,092 5,745 5,104 4,475 4,670 4,272 4,308 
			 Lincolnshire 2,387 2,308 2,104 1,913 2,631 2,362 2,364 
			 London, City of 259 201 199 199 191 222 192 
			 Merseyside 6,115 4,186 5,814 5,567 4,948 4,179 3,671 
			 Metropolitan Police 88,636 90,884 69,855 52,096 47,727 43,976 43,975 
			 Norfolk 3,976 3,546 3,908 3,582 3,242 3,024 2,734 
			 Northamptonshire 2,842 2,049 2,448 1,892 2,301 2,981 2,956 
			 Northumbria 10,800 3,319 2,882 2,548 3,137 2,754 3,238 
			 North Wales 3,186 2,495 2,461 2,592 4,102 3,145 2,790 
			 North Yorkshire 3,989 3,832 2,117 2,185 1,942 1,878 1,906 
			 Nottinghamshire 2,209 2,941 3,063 2,181 3,795 3,963 3,025 
			 South Wales 3,223 3,183 2,841 2,992 3,069 4,016 4,239 
			 South Yorkshire 4,511 5,073 9,466 4,872 3,763 3,083 2,452 
			 Staffordshire 5,853 5,396 4,829 5,402 5,543 4,847 5,245 
			 Suffolk 2,234 2,324 2,285 2,275 2,277 2,091 2,021 
			 Surrey 2,077 2,586 2,627 2,249 3,112 3,612 3,842 
			 Sussex 9,085 3,703 5,962 6,491 8,406 7,941 7,211 
			 Thames Valley 8,728 8,516 7,529 7,128 11,354 12,022 11,496 
			 Warwickshire 2,626 1,869 1,598 1,098 1,735 2,140 1,473 
			 West Mercia 4,899 5,146 3,219 2,133 2,592 3,298 3,245 
			 West Midlands 5,952 3,992 3,486 3,452 4,391 4,753 5,393 
			 West Yorkshire 7,908 5,980 5,671 7,465 10,651 10,695 9,358 
			 Wiltshire 1,792 1,057 701 751 1,256 1,851 2,503 
			 
			 England and Wales 276,099 267,579 244,182 209,717 228,801 223,480 218,618 
			 (1) The numbers given in this table are also included in Table 2. (2) Offence Classifications 104, 105A and 105B were used to produce the table. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 4: Number of defendants found guilty at all courts for violence against the person (more serious offences)( 1) , by p olice  f orce area-England and Wales 2002 to 2008( 2,)( )( 3,)( )( 4) 
			  Police force  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Avon and Somerset 77 87 86 88 87 75 68 
			 Bedfordshire 39 32 42 33 31 47 42 
			 Cambridgeshire 42 31 46 29 41 43 38 
			 Cheshire 50 53 54 84 58 70 44 
			 City of London 5 1 2 - 1 - 3 
			 Cleveland 46 54 52 61 53 52 46 
			 Cumbria 23 26 30 35 19 24 23 
			 Derbyshire 40 37 58 55 32 37 32 
			 Devon and Cornwall 67 58 69 92 63 64 59 
			 Dorset 22 20 26 33 34 29 21 
			 Durham 44 44 53 42 38 37 27 
			 Essex 57 73 55 65 53 71 71 
			 Gloucestershire 19 24 24 20 17 23 18 
			 Greater Manchester 257 222 226 238 223 245 229 
			 Hampshire 109 99 130 121 104 101 80 
			 Hertfordshire 53 40 43 61 33 34 39 
			 Humberside 47 74 77 69 71 86 67 
			 Kent 60 67 74 79 72 78 100 
			 Lancashire 109 116 130 123 91 122 124 
			 Leicestershire 59 66 78 64 36 60 66 
			 Lincolnshire 18 28 32 15 33 30 47 
			 Merseyside 103 115 107 120 126 108 82 
			 Metropolitan Police 515 529 612 589 578 604 652 
			 Norfolk 35 31 30 39 40 29 40 
			 North Yorkshire 29 26 32 50 32 54 34 
			 Northamptonshire 43 26 39 35 40 49 37 
			 Northumbria 113 121 109 117 115 136 129 
			 Nottinghamshire 52 58 56 76 71 63 71 
			 South Yorkshire 96 68 117 92 93 86 89 
			 Staffordshire 55 46 65 56 64 46 58 
			 Suffolk 39 29 34 30 26 13 35 
			 Surrey 17 25 31 20 24 35 21 
			 Sussex 72 65 73 67 70 70 93 
			 Thames Valley 83 93 88 107 110 111 112 
			 Warwickshire 23 18 21 29 23 29 24 
			 West Mercia 49 58 53 59 49 63 43 
			 West Midlands 230 222 247 228 238 221 206 
			 West Yorkshire 131 163 192 180 131 171 214 
			 Wiltshire 25 19 30 28 21 20 33 
			 Dyfed-Powys 21 30 28 27 21 31 30 
			 Gwent 64 45 59 52 28 36 28 
			 North Wales 30 27 32 54 36 40 43 
			 South Wales 133 129 112 127 116 110 106 
			 
			 England and Wales 3,201 3,195 3,554 3,589 3,242 3,453 3,424 
			 (1) Includes: Murder, Attempted murder, Threat or conspiracy to murder, Manslaughter, Infanticide, Child destruction, Causing death by dangerous driving, Manslaughter due to diminished responsibility, Causing death by careless driving under the influence of drink or drugs, Causing or allowing the death of a child or vulnerable person, Causing death by careless or inconsiderate driving, Causing death by driving,-unlicensed, disqualified or uninsured drivers, Causing death by aggravated vehicle taking, Wounding or other act endangering life, Endangering railway passenger. (2) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes convictions for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 5: Number of defendants found guilty at all courts for violence against the person (less serious offences)( 1) , by police force area-England and Wales 2002 to 2008( 2,)( )( 3,)( )( 4) 
			  Police force  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Avon and Somerset 737 848 747 829 830 856 888 
			 Bedfordshire 227 265 284 336 335 315 354 
			 Cambridgeshire 360 344 362 484 417 430 471 
			 Cheshire 631 562 487 704 825 849 713 
			 City of London 60 54 43 43 33 23 37 
			 Cleveland 400 416 464 508 667 641 649 
			 Cumbria 437 443 428 508 473 434 461 
			 Derbyshire 585 638 643 847 639 730 620 
			 Devon and Cornwall 766 908 807 820 751 699 732 
			 Dorset 289 295 307 415 372 349 313 
			 Durham 567 522 498 616 660 675 612 
			 Essex 561 629 772 767 755 842 799 
			 Gloucestershire 299 314 287 347 329 241 341 
			 Greater Manchester 2,345 2,522 2,751 2,608 2,838 2,821 2,520 
			 Hampshire 1,124 1,167 1,202 1,192 1,240 1,214 1,286 
			 Hertfordshire 486 467 517 622 546 485 443 
			 Humberside 608 703 719 732 783 867 792 
			 Kent 617 659 542 644 695 702 812 
			 Lancashire 1,175 1,176 1,171 1,228 1,507 1,594 1,497 
			 Leicestershire 739 715 724 825 730 714 641 
			 Lincolnshire 292 335 388 351 369 380 378 
			 Merseyside 1,211 1,237 1,331 1,301 1,409 1,396 1,313 
			 Metropolitan Police 5,879 5,342 5,468 5,471 5,590 5,406 6,132 
			 Norfolk 361 372 336 384 430 386 380 
			 North Yorkshire 336 365 426 463 467 545 510 
			 Northamptonshire 262 269 295 334 285 267 386 
			 Northumbria 1,361 1,270 1,201 1,263 1,227 1,391 1,317 
			 Nottinghamshire 687 688 694 761 784 791 712 
			 South Yorkshire 927 951 946 1,060 1,090 1,131 1,224 
			 Staffordshire 601 642 667 681 727 714 704 
			 Suffolk 329 367 410 455 545 469 379 
			 Surrey 206 229 263 253 302 311 316 
			 Sussex 629 674 603 713 778 847 802 
			 Thames Valley 682 698 713 938 1,038 998 977 
			 Warwickshire 195 190 232 260 303 273 276 
			 West Mercia 650 654 642 779 860 846 779 
			 West Midlands 2,860 2,764 2,731 2,299 2,610 2,389 2,342 
			 West Yorkshire 1,216 1,290 1,607 1,557 1,331 1,477 1,542 
			 Wiltshire 271 335 296 371 439 376 392 
			 Dyfed-Powys 332 386 320 335 329 335 228 
			 Gwent 553 482 512 433 538 530 403 
			 North Wales 406 440 477 550 641 612 574 
			 South Wales 1,248 1,214 1,282 1,253 1,105 1,147 1,048 
			 
			 England and Wales 34,507 34,841 35,595 37,340 38,622 38,498 38,095 
			 (1) Includes: Endangering life at sea, Other wounding etc., Cruelty to or neglect of children, Abandoning child aged under two years, Child abduction, procuring illegal abortion, Concealment of birth. (2) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (4) Excludes convictions for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 6: Number of defendants found guilty at all courts for common assault, by police force area-England and Wales 2002 to 2008( 1,)( )( 2,)( )( 3) 
			  Police force  2002  2003  2004  2005  2006  2007  2008 
			 Avon and Somerset 754 789 934 1,279 1,246 1,413 1,484 
			 Bedfordshire 246 307 364 452 528 442 491 
			 Cambridgeshire 334 347 396 563 699 736 762 
			 Cheshire 508 544 575 831 1,182 1,396 1,244 
			 City of London 28 18 21 23 44 47 60 
			 Cleveland 234 350 426 444 515 634 657 
			 Cumbria 359 407 474 573 593 687 775 
			 Derbyshire 561 684 883 1,130 1,158 1,328 1,463 
			 Devon and Cornwall 1,044 1,041 1,204 1,333 1,171 1,168 1,365 
			 Dorset 363 340 406 518 605 756 670 
			 Durham 341 318 337 434 457 665 551 
			 Essex 840 894 1,068 1,419 1,624 1,724 1,656 
			 Gloucestershire 287 307 349 498 520 462 614 
			 Greater Manchester 998 1,183 1,825 2,135 2,637 2,830 2,653 
			 Hampshire 1,322 1,480 1,982 1,863 1,966 2,248 2,216 
			 Hertfordshire 376 461 621 856 901 861 860 
			 Humberside 444 587 755 842 888 1,029 1,017 
			 Kent 810 930 1,075 1,153 1,351 1,454 1,421 
			 Lancashire 844 993 1,034 1,512 1,957 2,131 2,145 
			 Leicestershire 527 630 734 1,098 1,156 1,407 1,275 
			 Lincolnshire 480 570 567 585 619 570 571 
			 Merseyside 671 946 1,153 1,287 1,464 1,520 1,456 
			 Metropolitan Police 2,829 2,941 3,416 4,063 5,096 5,304 5,888 
			 Norfolk 612 617 678 662 728 792 881 
			 North Yorkshire 420 438 582 765 800 753 726 
			 Northamptonshire 283 331 361 419 423 427 426 
			 Northumbria 776 947 1,106 1,128 1,226 1,586 1,468 
			 Nottinghamshire 910 906 917 1,098 1,143 1,043 1,033 
			 South Yorkshire 580 724 929 1,049 1,184 1,343 1,286 
			 Staffordshire 780 802 938 1,080 1,107 1,116 943 
			 Suffolk 467 536 704 770 836 822 807 
			 Surrey 293 415 492 601 559 603 591 
			 Sussex 768 809 1,075 1,099 1,124 1,382 1,439 
			 Thames Valley 796 841 984 1,524 1,696 1,664 1,639 
			 Warwickshire 192 176 194 273 303 426 351 
			 West Mercia 676 733 948 1,131 1,208 1,225 1,102 
			 West Midlands 2,467 2,529 2,793 2,848 2,937 2,978 2,742 
			 West Yorkshire 1,577 2,010 2,445 2,579 2,362 2,428 2,345 
			 Wiltshire 519 623 616 620 615 531 547 
			 Dyfed-Powys 258 317 350 358 459 443 393 
			 Gwent 374 343 371 387 512 543 571 
			 North Wales 476 501 566 643 736 791 842 
			 South Wales 525 617 682 820 925 985 893 
			 
			 England and Wales 28,949 32,282 38,330 44,745 49,260 52,693 52,319 
			 (1) The statistics relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences the principal offence is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe. (2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. (3) Excludes convictions for Cardiff magistrates court for April, July and August 2008.  Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice

Departmental ICT

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the monetary value was of payments made by his Department to external IT contractors in each of the last five years.

Phil Woolas: The total monetary value of payments made by the Home Department to external IT contractors for each of the financial years 2005-06 to 2008-09 was as follows:
	
		
			  Payments made to IT suppliers: Home Department including UKBA 
			  Financial year  £ million 
			 2005-06 150 
			 2006-07 223 
			 2007-08 336 
			 2008-09 265 
			  Note: Following their incorporation into the Ministry of Justice in May 2007, the National Offenders Management Service (NOMS) and Office of Criminal Justice Reform (OCJR) continued to share the Home Office accounting system until October 2008. Figures to October 2008 include payments by NOMS and OCJR as they could be excluded only at disproportionate cost. 
		
	
	The payment figures to October 2008 include expenditure by the National Offenders Management Service and the Office of Criminal Justice Reform, both of which are now incorporated into the Ministry of Justice.
	Because of in-year changes to the Department's accounting systems, payment information for the financial year 2004-05 could be made available only at disproportionate cost.
	The 2008-09 figure represents just under 20 per cent. of spend on goods and services by the Home Office and UKBA and reflects the significant technology enabling initiatives undertaken to protect our borders and counter terrorism.
	The Department awards contracts in competition according to the EU procurement directives based on value for money.

Domestic Violence: Immigrants

Jo Swinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the pilot project for women with no recourse to public funds will be extended beyond August 2010; and whether he plans to make that initiative permanent.

Phil Woolas: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.

Drugs: Misuse

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  which substances commonly considered to be legal highs are under review by his Department;
	(2)  when officials in his Department were first made aware of the risks arising from the use of mephedrone as a drug;
	(3)  if he will consider bringing forward proposals to include  (a) methylone and  (b) butylone within the provisions of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971.

Alan Campbell: Pursuant to the previous Home Secretary's commission of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to provide advice on so called legal highs in March 2009 and following its advice on synthetic cannabinoids, and cathinone derivatives, the ACMD are now considering its next priority area from a range that includes but is not limited to plants such as Kava kava and Salvia divinorum, solvents and gases, miscellaneous stimulants and hallucinogens, and fungi.
	Home Office officials first became aware of the use of mephedrone as a drug following unconfirmed presentations to Accident and Emergency units during the Isle of Wight music festival in late July 2009.
	The draft order to control mephedrone and other cathinone derivatives currently before Parliament will enshrine in law a generic definition encompassing a wide range of cathinone derivatives, including methylone and butylone.

Human Trafficking

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many judicial reviews of decisions made by the competent authority in relation to human trafficking cases were  (a) initiated and  (b) completed between 1 April 2009 and 28 February 2010.

Alan Campbell: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.

Identity Cards: Cheshire

Edward Timpson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for identity cards his Department has received from residents of postcode area  (a) CW1 3,  (b) CW1 4,  (c) CW3 0,  (d) CW3 9,  (e) CW5 6,  (f) CW5 8,  (g) CW11 4,  (h) ST7 2,  (i) CW1 2,  (j) CW2 6,  (k) CW2 7,  (l) CW5 7,  (m) CW5 5,  (n) CW2 8,  (o) CW1 5,  (p) CW2 5 and  (q) CW1 6 since 1 January 2010.

Phil Woolas: holding answer 30 March 2010
	The Identity and Passport Service is not able to provide a breakdown of applications received to this level of postcode detail without contravening data protection principles.

Illegal Immigrants: Employment

Sandra Osborne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department on what dates his Department monitored each UK fishing port to assess whether employees were working illegally in the last 12 months; and what the results of such monitoring were.

Phil Woolas: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.

Immigrants: Detainees

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people held in immigration removal centres (IRCs) pending removal from the country were transferred to another IRC before being removed in the last 12 months.

Phil Woolas: The information requested could be obtained by undertaking a detailed examination of individual records which would be only at disproportionate cost.
	Detainees are not routinely moved between centres without an operational reason. This is normally to ensure occupancy levels of the bed space is maximised, to re-position detainees close to airports in preparation for their removal from the UK, to attend court hearings, medical appointments or for an interview.

Independent Safeguarding Authority: Manpower

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what proportion of caseworkers employed by the Independent Safeguarding Authority to make barring decisions under the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006 do not have  (a) a university degree,  (b) any A-levels and  (c) more than four GCSEs at A* to C grade.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 6 January 2010
	The Independent Safeguarding Authority recruits caseworkers based on competency based assessment which links to the skills and experience they can bring to the post rather than academic qualifications. However, the breakdown of the percentages of Independent Safeguarding Authority (ISA) caseworker qualifications (Levels 3-6) is as follows:
	 ( a) Staff with degrees = 28 per cent.
	 ( b) Staff with A levels = 49 per cent.
	 (c) Staff with four GCE/GCSE's grade A* to C or above = 70 per cent.
	Casework Officers, Decision Makers, Team Managers and Unit Heads undertake the UCAPD-Professional Decision Making in the ISA. This programme is accredited by Teesside University and awards individuals 60 credits/units of an academic qualification.

Mephedrone

Nigel Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what representations he has received on the banning of mephedrone in the UK;
	(2)  if he will introduce proposals to ban the sale of mephedrone in the UK.

Alan Campbell: Following receipt of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs advice on 29 March 2010, a draft order to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 to control mephedrone and other cathinone derivatives as class B drugs is currently before Parliament for its approval. With Parliament's agreement, these drugs will be controlled on 16 April 2010.

Mephedrone

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received on the classification of mephedrone under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Campbell: holding answer 29 March 2010
	The most recent representation received on the classification of mephedrone is the advice of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), the Government's independent expert body, on 29 March 2010. The ACMD's advice can be accessed at:
	http://drugs.homeoffice.gov.uk/drugs-laws/acmd/index.html
	On the recommendation of the ACMD that mephedrone and other cathinone derivatives should be brought under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 as Class B drugs, a draft Order to amend the 1971 Act is currently before Parliament for its approval. With Parliament's agreement, these drugs will be controlled on 16 April 2010.

Misuse of Drugs Act 1971

Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he plans to bring forward proposals to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 to provide for  (a) nurse independent prescribers and  (b) pharmacist independent prescribers to prescribe more controlled drugs; and if he will make a statement.

Alan Campbell: The Government plan to amend the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 (as amended) when Parliament returns in order to expand the range of controlled drugs that can be prescribed independently by Nurse Independent Prescribers and to enable Pharmacist Independent Prescribers to independently prescribe controlled drugs.

Operation Greenfly

James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of  (a) Operation Greenfly and  (b) Operation Calais.

Alan Campbell: These operations, like other operational matters in the force area, are the responsibility of the chief constable of Essex police, with whom questions about their effectiveness should be taken up.

Police: Greater Manchester

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the implementation of the policing pledge in Greater Manchester.

David Hanson: holding answer 7 April 2010
	It is for individual police forces and authorities to ensure delivery of the Policing Pledge in their area. The Government will hold forces to account for progress through the single top-down target we have set them to improve public confidence that the antisocial behaviour and crime issues that matter locally are being tackled, and in the light of inspection work by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC). In September 2009, 50 per cent. of the public were confident that antisocial behaviour and crime issues that matter in their area were being dealt with-an increase of 4 per cent. points in the last year.
	In October 2009, HMIC published a report on the progress of all forces in delivering the Pledge and the report graded Greater Manchester police as 'fair'. Police authorities are now working with forces to ensure that the learning identified by HMIC is taken onboard and that the Policing Pledge is delivered consistently across their force area.

UK Border Agency: Correspondence

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons the Assistant Director of the UK Border Agency did not reply to the hon. Member for Thurrock's letter of 23 September 2009 (re CTS Ref B34288/9 and Z1048050) until 26 March 2010; why her letter was not despatched until 29 March 2010; and if he will make a statement.

Phil Woolas: The delay in responding to my hon. Friend's letter was due to an internal organisational re-structuring which impacted temporarily on work allocation and, as a result, certain items of work were not actioned within the appropriate time scales.

War Crimes

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2010,  Official Report, columns 351-2W, on the UK Border Agency's War Crimes Unit, what the country of origin is of those recommended for refusal/exclusion.

Phil Woolas: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.

War Crimes

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2010,  Official Report, columns 351-52W, on the UK Border Agency's War Crimes Unit, how many people whose cases the Border Agency referred to the Metropolitan Police are still in the UK.

Phil Woolas: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.

War Crimes

Stephen Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 24 March 2010,  Official Report, columns 351-52W, on the UK Border Agency's War Crimes Unit, how many people the Border Agency recommended for refusal/exclusion are still in the UK.

Phil Woolas: It has not proved possible to respond in the time available before Prorogation.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to reply to question 324858, tabled on 23 March 2010, on Group 4 Securicor (G4S).

Phil Woolas: I refer my hon. Friend to my answer of 6 April 2010,  Official Report, column 1268W.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for what reasons he has not provided a substantive response to Question  (a) 325183 on human trafficking and  (b) 325031 on the European Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse.

Alan Campbell: I refer the hon. Gentleman to my answers of 7 April 2010,  Official Report, column 1382W, and 6 April 2010,  Official Report, column 1271W respectively.

NORTHERN IRELAND

Bloody Sunday Tribunal of Inquiry

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much the Saville Inquiry has spent on IT consultants since its inception.

Shaun Woodward: I am advised by the Bloody Sunday Inquiry that it has spent approximately £2.2 million on information technology consultants to the end of February 2010.

Bloody Sunday Tribunal of Inquiry

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the budget is of the press office for the Saville Inquiry in the  (a) current and  (b) next financial year.

Shaun Woodward: I am advised by the Bloody Sunday Inquiry that the Inquiry does not currently employ a press officer and there is no dedicated budget for press office facilities. Since November 2004, all press inquiries have been handled by the Secretary and Deputy Secretary to the Inquiry. An average total on-call allowance of £400 per month is paid to cover out-of-hours press inquiries.

Departmental Advertising

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what advertising campaigns were  (a) launched and  (b) maintained by his Department in 2008-09; and how much each such campaign cost in that year.

Paul Goggins: Expenditure and a list of the advertising campaigns  (a) launched and  (b) maintained by the Northern Ireland Office, including its arm's length bodies and the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland but excluding its agencies and Executive NDPBs, in 2008-09 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			  Campaign  Maintained/launched  Cost (£) 
			 PPSNI Recruitment Launched 7,365 
			 Fireworks Campaign Maintained 49,315 
			 Recruitment of member of the Boundary Commission Launched 12,929 
			 Public appointments competition for recruitment of Civil Service Commissioners for Northern Ireland Launched 14,678 
			 Unknown Callers-Community Safety television advertisement Maintained 102,030 
			 Theft from Vehicles-television advertisement Maintained 78,682 
			 Close it, Lock it, Check it Campaign Launched 169,425 
			 Publicising section 75 Equality Legislation Launched 2,858

Departmental Buildings

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department and its agencies have spent on rooms for staff leisure in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) and its Agencies have spent the following amounts on rooms for staff leisure, including fitness facilities and equipment, in each of the last five years;
	The NIO in 2009-10 spent £1,582.26, and in 2008-9 spent £7,614.24. There was no expenditure in the previous three years.
	The NI Prison Service in 2008-9 spent £2,015.13, and in 2007-8 £9,621.83. There was no expenditure in the other years.
	Expenditure on fitness facilities and equipment, including shower facilities, is seen as contributing to the promotion of good health amongst staff.

Departmental Dismissal

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many members of staff in his Department were dismissed in each of the last five years; and how many were dismissed as a result of under-performance in each year.

Paul Goggins: The details requested are shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Total dismissed  Dismissed as a result of under performance 
			 2005 *1 0 
			 2006 5 (*2) 0 
			 2007 8 0 
			 2008 4 0 
			 2009 2 0 
			 * Reason for dismissal not recorded.

Departmental Freedom of Information

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland from how many documents released by his Department under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 in the last five years information has been withheld under the exemptions relating to  (a) parliamentary privilege,  (b) disclosure of personal data,  (c) disclosure of commercial data,  (d) duty of confidence and the public interest,  (e) operation of a ministerial private office,  (f) advice from the Law Officers,  (g) ministerial correspondence,  (h) formulation or development of Government policy,  (i) information supplied by or relating to security bodies,  (j) international relations and  (k) relations between bodies within the UK.

Paul Goggins: In order to provide the information requested it would be necessary to review all documents that have been released by the Department since 2005. As this would incur disproportionate costs I regret that I am unable to provide the information.

Departmental ICT

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which of his Department's ICT projects were over budget at the latest date for which information is available; and by how much each was over budget at that time.

Paul Goggins: The Causeway Programme is a key element in the continuing modernisation and reform of the criminal justice system in Northern Ireland. At its inception, total costs were estimated at £42.7 million. The most recent estimate is that total costs through to the end of the contract in 2013 will be £61.6 million. The increased costs have arisen in three main areas:
	Adaptation of criminal justice line of business systems to link in with Causeway - £7 million
	PPP contract changes - £8 million
	Programme development and office costs - £4 million
	The rate of return on the investment is, however, expected to be broadly similar to the original estimate.

Departmental Impact Assessments

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many equalities impact assessments his Department has undertaken in the last 12 months for which figures are available; and what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of such assessments.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) has not undertaken any equality impact assessments in the 12 months ending 28 February 2010.

Departmental Legal Costs

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department has spent on  (a) legal fees and  (b) compensation in relation to legal cases concerning remuneration of its employees in each of the last five years.

Shaun Woodward: Due to Prorogation it has not been possible to answer this question.

Departmental Manpower

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many  (a) nationals of other EU member states and  (b) non-EU foreign nationals his Department employs.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) has no central record of nationals of other EU member states and non-EU foreign nationals in our employment. Since November 2007, the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS), which also carries out recruitment on behalf of the NIO, has collected the nationality details of applicants for vacancies. This information is retained for those who are successful and are appointed to posts in the NICS and NIO.

Departmental Marketing

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department spent on promotional items carrying the Department's branding and logo in the last five years; and what such items were.

Paul Goggins: The following table details expenditure by the Northern Ireland Office (NIO), including its arm's length bodies and the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland but excluding its agencies and NDPBs on promotional items carrying the Department's branding and logo in the last five years.
	
		
			   Item  Total (£) 
			 2004-05 - Nil 
			 2005-06 - Nil 
			 2006-07 Leadership programme folders 2,389.63 
			 2007-08 Leaflets and posters advertising e-learning programme 6,361.45 
			 2008-09 Leadership programme folders 2,239.63 
			  Consultant business cards 129.13 
			  Sentencing framework leaflets and posters 819.50

Departmental Marketing

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much of his Department's marketing budget was spent on  (a) media advertising,  (b) promotion and  (c) education packs and initiatives for schools in 2008-09.

Paul Goggins: Expenditure on  (a) media advertising  (b) promotion and  (c) education packs and initiatives for schools by the Northern Ireland Office, including its arm's length bodies and the Public Prosecution Service Northern Ireland but excluding its agencies and executive NDPBs, in 2008-09 is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   £ 
			 Media Advertising 422,785 
			 Promotion 5,562 
			 Education Packs and Initiatives for Schools 109,903

Departmental Meetings

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many official meetings he has had in  (a) London,  (b) Belfast,  (c) Londonderry,  (d) Newry,  (e) Armagh and  (f) the United States of America in the last 12 months.

Shaun Woodward: To identify each and every separate official meeting the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has had in the last 12 months on official business in London, Northern Ireland and the United States can be done only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Opinion Polls

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much was spent by his Department on  (a) opinion polling,  (b) focus groups and  (c) other forms of market research in each of the last five years; what surveys were commissioned; and what the purpose was of each such survey.

Paul Goggins: The requested information is as follows:
	 2005-06
	Opinion polling-£340,317
	Focus groups-£27,480
	Other market research-£0
	 Surveys commissioned and the purpose of each:
	Northern Ireland Information Service Poll-to gauge public view on the political process;
	Commissioned questions for NI Omnibus survey-to obtain public perception of Public Prosecution Service which in turn assists in the development of policy;
	NI Crime Survey-to ascertain people's experience and perceptions of crime in N.I;
	NI Omnibus Survey-Recovery of Assets Module-to ascertain people's awareness of Assets Recovery Agency and perceptions of its effectiveness;
	NI Omnibus Survey-Confidence in the Criminal Justice System Module-to assess people's confidence of the Criminal Justice System;
	NI Omnibus Survey-Confidence in Police Module-to assess people's confidence of the police; and
	NI Omnibus Survey-Sexual Violence Module-perceptions and assessment of sexual violence in NI.
	 2006-07
	Opinion polling-£399,328
	Focus groups-£0
	Other market research-£0
	 Surveys commissioned and the purpose of each:
	Northern Ireland Information Service Poll-to gauge public view on the political process;
	Commissioned questions for NI Omnibus survey-to obtain public perception of Public Prosecution Service which in turn assists in the development of policy;
	NI Crime Survey-to ascertain people's experience and perceptions of crime in NI;
	NI Omnibus Survey-Organised Crime Module-to ascertain people's experience and perceptions of Organised Crime;
	NI Omnibus Survey-Recovery of Assets Module-to ascertain people's awareness of Assets Recovery Agency and perceptions of its effectiveness;
	Compensation Agency Applicants' Attitudes Survey; and
	Public Attitudes towards Sex Offenders.
	 2007-08
	Opinion polling-£397,145
	Focus groups-£1,828
	Other market research-£7,370
	 Surveys commissioned and the purpose of each:
	Northern Ireland Information Service Poll-to gauge public view on the political process;
	Commissioned questions for NI Omnibus survey-to obtain public perception of Public Prosecution Service which in turn assists in the development of policy;
	NI Crime Survey-to ascertain people's experience and perceptions of crime in NI;
	NI Omnibus Survey-Organised Crime Module-to ascertain people's experience and perceptions of Organised Crime;
	NI Omnibus Survey-Recovery of Assets Module-to ascertain people's awareness of Assets Recovery Agency and perceptions of its effectiveness;
	NI Omnibus Survey -Youth Justice Agency module-to ascertain people's awareness of the Youth Justice Agency and perceptions of its effectiveness; and
	Evaluation of OCTF Christmas Counterfeit goods campaign.
	 2008-09
	Opinion polling-£46,069
	Focus groups-£0
	Other market research-£9,897
	 Surveys Commissioned and the purpose of each:
	Northern Ireland Information Service Poll-to gauge public view on the political process;
	Commissioned questions for NI Omnibus survey-to obtain public perception of Public Prosecution Service which in turn assists in the development of policy;
	Customer Satisfaction Survey-to analyse the performance of the compensation Agency;
	Access NI-Customer Attitudes Survey; and
	Evaluation of OCTF Christmas Counterfeit goods campaign.
	 2009-10
	Opinion polling-£37,145
	Focus groups-£0
	Other market research-£6,539
	 Surveys commissioned and the purpose of each:
	Access NI-Customer Attitudes Survey;
	Evaluation of OCTF Christmas Counterfeit goods campaign;
	To gauge public opinion on the political process (May 2009); and
	To gauge public opinion on the political process (March 2010).

Departmental Opinion Polls

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what direction his Department gives to its contractors on the framing of questions in surveys it commissions.

Paul Goggins: Polling questions are agreed in consultation between the Department and the contractor.

Departmental Opinion Polls

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland in respect of how many surveys commissioned by his Department in 2010 the  (a) results and  (b) supporting data have been published in full.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) has not commissioned any surveys in 2010 where the  (a) results and  (b) supporting data have been published in full.

Departmental Opinion Polls

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what opinion surveys were commissioned by his Department in  (a) 2008,  (b) 2009 and  (c) 2010 to date; and what company was commissioned to undertake each.

Shaun Woodward: The requested information is as follows:
	
		
			  Survey  Commissioned Company 
			  2008-09  
			 Northern Ireland Information Service Millward and Brown Ulster 
			 Poll - to gauge public view on the political process;  
			 Commissioned questions for NI Omnibus survey - to obtain public perception of Public Prosecution Service which in turn assists in the development of policy; Millward and Brown Ulster 
			 Customer Satisfaction Survey - to analyse the performance of the Compensation Agency; Millward and Brown Ulster 
			 Access NI - Customer Attitudes NI Statistics and Research Agency 
			 Survey; and  
			 Evaluation of OCTF Christmas counterfeit goods campaign. Genesis Advertising 
			   
			  2009-10  
			 Access NI - Customer Attitudes Survey; NI Statistics and Research Agency 
			 Evaluation of OCTF Christmas counterfeit goods campaign; Genesis Advertising 
			 To gauge public opinion on the political process (May 2009); and Millward and Brown Ulster 
			 To gauge public opinion on the political process (March 2010). Millward and Brown Ulster

Departmental Pay

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many and what proportion of senior civil servants in his Department were awarded a bonus in 2009; and what the  (a) highest,  (b) lowest,  (c) mean,  (d) median and  (e) mode bonus awarded was.

Paul Goggins: Non-consolidated performance payments are made to staff in the senior civil service in line with Cabinet Office Guidance. In 2009 performance payments were made to 37 senior civil servants which is 58.7 per cent. of the senior civil servants in the Department. The highest payment  (a) was £11,000, the lowest  (b) was £1,800, the mean payment  (c) was £7,762, the median payment  (d) was £7,570 and the mode payment  (e) was £6,450.

Departmental Pay

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many and what proportion of his Department's Board members who were civil servants working in his Department were awarded a bonus in  (a) 2008 and  (b) 2009; and what the highest bonus paid was in each year.

Paul Goggins: In 2008 there were 12 board members of which 11 received a bonus, which constitutes 91.7 per cent. of the Board. The highest bonus paid was £18,000.
	In 2009 there were nine board members of which six received a bonus, which constitutes 66.7 per cent. of the Board. The highest bonus paid was £11,000.

Departmental Press: Subscriptions

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland to which  (a) magazines and  (b) journals his Department has subscribed in each of the last five years; and what the cost was of those subscriptions.

Paul Goggins: The information requested is as follows.
	 Community Safety Unit
	Pavilion Community Safety Journal (2010 cost £619.00)
	Older People Journal (2010 cost £125.00)
	
		
			   Total (£) 
			 2005-06 619.00 
			 2006-07 619.00 
			 2007-08 619.00 
			 2008-09 744.00 
			 2009-10 744.00 
		
	
	 Personnel Services Division
	Central Government Supplies Estimates 2007-08 (2008-09 cost £61.92)
	Employers Pay Benefits Manual Issues 26-29 (2008-09 cost £359.00)
	Employment Law Issues 74-79 (2008-09 cost £827.00)
	Industrial Relations Law Reports Journal 2008-10 (2008-09 cost £2,566.00)
	Payroll Factfile Issues 85-90 (2008-09 cost £474.00)
	Termination Employment Issues 26-29 (2008-09 cost £430.25)
	
		
			   Total (£) 
			 2008-09 3,891.17 
		
	
	 Information  a nd Corporate Services Division Millbank
	Economist (2009-10 cost £960.00)
	New Statesman (2009-10 cost £672.00)
	Spectator (2009-10 cost £614.40)
	Private Eye (2009-10 cost £36.00)
	Tribune (2009-10 cost £288.00)
	
		
			   Total (£) 
			 2005-06 No figures available 
			 2006-07 2,392.80 
			 2007-08 2,392.80 
			 2008-09 2,392.80 
			 2009-10 2,570.40 
		
	
	 Criminal Justice Library
	British Journal of Criminology (2009 cost £357.85)
	British Journal of Social Work (2009 cost £472.63)
	Bulletin of NI Law (2009 cost £210.00)
	Child Care in Practice (2009 cost 179.07)
	Community Safety (2009 cost £195.00)
	Criminal Justice (2009 cost £380.14)
	Criminal Justice Matters (2009 cost £112.87)
	Criminal Law Review (2009 cost £320.00)
	Drugscope (2008 cost £55.00)
	Economist (2008-09 cost £103.00)
	European Human Rights Law Review (2009 cost £388.00)
	Fortnight (2009 cost £28.00)
	House of Commons Weekly Information Bulletin (2009 cost £48.15)
	Howard Journal of Criminal Justice (2009 cost £70.00)
	Human Rights Alerter (2009 cost £197.00)
	Human Rights Updater (2009 cost £179.00)
	International Review of Victimology (2009 cost £179.00)
	Journal of Adolescence (2009 cost £48.00)
	Justice of the Peace Journal and Justice of the Peace reports (2009 cost £499.00)
	Magistrate (2009 cost £30.00)
	Modern Law Review (2009 cost £230.35)
	New Law Journal (2009-10 cost £285.00)
	Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly (2008 cost £85.00)
	Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly (2009-10 cost £100.00)
	Police Journal (2009 cost £131.00)
	
		
			   Total (£) 
			 2008-09 4,883.06 
		
	
	 Crown Solicitor ' s Office
	Coredry on Solicitors (2009-10 cost £1,304.00)
	Costs (2009-10 cost £590.00)
	Criminal Appeal Reports (2009-10 cost £1,071.00)
	Current Law (2009-10 cost £1,454.00)
	Discrimination In Employment (2009-10 cost £216.00)
	European Human Rights Reports (2009-10 cost £748.00)
	European Human Rights Law Review (2009-10 cost £601.00)
	Human Rights Practice (2009-10 cost £214.00)
	IDS Employment Law Brief (2009-10 cost £681.00)
	Industrial Cases Reports (2009-10 cost £440.00)
	Judicial Review (2009-10 cost £195.00)
	Kemp and Kemp on Personal Injury (2009-10 cost £234.00)
	Mitchell on Confiscation (2009-10 cost £204.00)
	New Law Journal (2009-10 cost £285.00)
	Northern Ireland Legal Quarterly (2009-10 cost £100.00)
	Northern Ireland Law Bulletin (2009-10 cost £120.00)
	
		
			   Total (£) 
			 2005-06 5,057.50 
			 2006-07 5,984.01 
			 2007-08 6,050.23 
			 2008-09 7,096.00 
			 2009-10 8,457.00 
		
	
	 Policing Policy and Strategy Branch
	Jane's Police Review (2010 cost £103.48)
	
		
			   Total £ 
			 2005-06 103.48 
			 2006-07 103.48 
			 2007-08 103.48 
			 2008-09 103.48 
			 2009-10 103.48

Departmental Temporary Employment

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which companies were contracted by his Department for the provision of temporary staff in each of the last five years; how many temporary staff were employed by his Department in each such year; and what the monetary value was of contracts with each such company in each such year.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) did not contract any companies for the provision of temporary workers. Temporary workers employed by the NIO are drawn from contracts set up by the Department of Finance and Personnel (NI).
	Prior to 1 February 2010, the recruitment of temporary staff was delegated to business areas in NIO and no information on numbers is available.
	Since 1 February 2010, the recruitment of temporary workers for the Department is managed centrally. There are currently 26 such staff in post.

Departmental Theft

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps his Department is taking to deter theft from within the Department.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) takes a range of measures across its Estate which reflect the standards set out in HMG Security Policy Framework (SPF) issued by the Cabinet Office and available online at:
	www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/spf.aspx
	These measures to deter theft from within the Department include: controlling access to the Department's buildings; informing staff both at induction and on an ongoing basis of their responsibility to comply with the policies and procedures laid down for safe guarding departmental assets, including property and information; maintaining property asset registers; and having appropriate financial procedures in place to mitigate against the theft of money. It would not be appropriate to provide details of specific controls as this could undermine their effectiveness.

Departmental Travel

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department's agencies spent on staff travel  (a) within the UK and  (b) abroad in each year since 1997.

Paul Goggins: As each of the Northern Ireland Office's agencies maintain their own finance system, there are differences in the information that can be provided.
	
		
			  Northern Ireland Prison Service 
			  £ 
			   Within UK  Outside UK  Total 
			 1997-98 n/a n/a 948,884 
			 1998-99 n/a n/a 1,780,058 
			 1999-2000 n/a n/a 1,578,014 
			 2000-01 n/a n/a 1,453,299 
			 2001-02 n/a n/a 2,002,319 
			 2002-03 n/a n/a 1,383,910 
			 2003-04 1,382,452 735 1,383,187 
			 2004-05 1,791,044 645 1,791,689 
			 2005-06 1,860,508 4,330 1,864,838 
			 2006-07 1,634,440 3,805 1,638,245 
			 2007-08 1,415,943 2,051 1,417,994 
			 2008-09 1,444,519 1,166 1,445,685 
			 n/a = Not available 
		
	
	The Northern Ireland Prison Service is able to provide a breakdown of UK and international travel expenditure from 2003-04. To split the expenditure in the same way prior to this would involve a manual investigation of all claims which would incur disproportionate costs.
	
		
			  Compensation Agency 
			  £ 
			   Within UK  Outside UK  Total 
			 1997-98 n/a n/a 12,474 
			 1998-99 n/a n/a 14,066 
			 1999-2000 n/a n/a 12,807 
			 2000-01 n/a n/a 16,533 
			 2001-02 n/a n/a 10,211 
			 2002-03 n/a n/a 24,413 
			 2003-04 n/a n/a 21,151 
			 2004-05 n/a n/a 17,281 
			 2005-06 n/a n/a 17,174 
			 2006-07 n/a n/a 13,342 
			 2007-08 n/a n/a 6,618 
			 2008-09 n/a n/a 5,201 
			 n/a = Not available 
		
	
	Compensation Agency expenditure on travel is grouped under the same heading as subsistence. The above figures therefore include both travel and subsistence. To provide separate costs and give details of whether the staff travel was within or outside the UK can be done only at disproportionate cost.
	
		
			  Youth Justice Agency 
			  £ 
			   Within UK  Outside UK  Total 
			 1997-98 (1)- (1)- (1)- 
			 1998-99 (1)- (1)- (1)- 
			 1999-2000 (1)- (1)- (1)- 
			 2000-01 (1)- (1)- (1)- 
			 2001-02 (1)- (1)- (1)- 
			 2002-03 (1)- (1)- (1)- 
			 2003-04 184,499 0 184,499 
			 2004-05 173,318 0 173,318 
			 2005-06 192,926 0 192,926 
			 2006-07 244,107 535 244,642 
			 2007-08 225,663 0 225,663 
			 2008-09 248,915 0 248,915 
			 (1) Not applicable 
		
	
	The Youth Justice Agency was launched on 1 April 2003.
	
		
			  Forensic Science Agency of Northern Ireland (FSND 
			  £ 
			   Within UK  Outside UK  Total 
			 1997-98 n/a n/a n/a 
			 1998-99 n/a n/a n/a 
			 1999-2000 n/a n/a n/a 
			 2000-01 n/a n/a n/a 
			 2001-02 n/a n/a n/a 
			 2002-03 n/a n/a n/a 
			 2003-04 n/a n/a n/a 
			 2004-05 n/a n/a n/a 
			 2005-06 n/a n/a n/a 
			 2006-07 n/a n/a 107,127 
			 2007-08 n/a n/a 111,182 
			 2008-09 n/a n/a 104,122 
			 n/a = Not available 
		
	
	FSNI's current finance system has only been in operation since 2006-07 and groups expenditure on travel under the same heading as subsistence so the above figures include both travel and subsistence. Figures before 2006-07 could be provided only at disproportionate cost as this would involve a manual investigation of claim forms.

Festivals and Special Occasions

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department spent on  (a) Christmas and  (b) other religious celebrations in each of the last five years.

Shaun Woodward: Due to Prorogation it has not been possible to answer this question.

Festivals and Special Occasions

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much was spent on security and policing at the 12 July celebrations in each of the last five years.

Paul Goggins: This is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Hotels

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many nights he has stayed in hotels on official business in  (a) Northern Ireland,  (b) the Republic of Ireland,  (c) Great Britain and  (d) the United States of America in the last 12 months.

Shaun Woodward: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   Number of nights stayed 
			 Northern Ireland None 
			 Republic of Ireland None 
			 Great Britain None 
			  Note: Details of overseas visits, including the United States, are published annually by the Cabinet Office.

Historical Enquiries Team

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the budget is of the Historical Enquiries Team in the next two years.

Paul Goggins: The total budget for the Historical Enquiries Team project for 2010-11 is £7.2 million. The budget is split between HET PSNI, the Office of the Police Ombudsman NI, the Public Prosecution Service and Forensic Science NI. Future budgets will form part of the next spending review.

Irish Language

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to the answer of 10 December 2009,  Official Report, column 532W, on Irish language, what steps his Department takes to assist Irish language users in using Irish when dealing with his Department.

Paul Goggins: In line with the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages the Northern Ireland Office has adopted a Code of Courtesy for the Irish language which is available to staff as guidance when dealing with Irish language users.

Mass Media

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much his Department has spent on press monitoring in each of the last five years.

Shaun Woodward: The Northern Ireland Office has an in-house media monitoring service to meet the needs of Ministers and senior officials within the Department. It also provides its media monitoring services to Ministers and officials in the devolved Administration and a number of external public sector stakeholders.
	
		
			   Equipment costs  Media monitoring unit  Typing pool 
			 2004-05 14,052.15 70,000 69,000 
			 2005-06 2,397.76 70,200 72,000 
			 2006-07 1,682.14 79,000 79,000 
			 2007-08 6,080.04 69,000 79,000 
			 2008-09 2,957.14 62,000 82,000 
		
	
	Equipment costs are all the costs associated with press monitoring-for example televisions, DVD recorders, DVD discs, tapes, radios and trans-scribers.
	The Department recoups a percentage of its running costs by passing on a small charge to its clients.
	Currently there are four members of staff employed in the Media Monitoring Unit and a further five typists to transcribe media monitoring requests. Staffing numbers have fluctuated over this period. I have provided the average salary costs for each team.

Police Service of Northern Ireland

Andrew MacKinlay: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland for what reasons officers from the Police Service of Northern Ireland crossed the border into the Irish Republic in March 2010 and stopped cars there; and if he will make a statement.

Paul Goggins: This is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Presbyterian Mutual Society

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  what recent assistance he has given to the Northern Ireland Executive in relation to the Presbyterian Mutual Society;
	(2)  what support his Department is giving to those with money deposited with the Presbyterian Mutual Society.

Shaun Woodward: I have huge sympathy for investors in the Presbyterian Mutual Society whose investments are at risk following the entry of the Society into administration. The Prime Minister set up the Presbyterian Mutual Society Working Group in July 2009. That group, on which I sit alongside Treasury Ministers and Ministers from the Northern Ireland Executive, continues to try and find a solution to mitigate members' losses, and to consider all proposals which could responsibly help those affected by the failure of the PMS.

Presbyterian Mutual Society

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland 
	(1)  what meetings he has had with (a) HM Treasury,  (b) the Northern Ireland Executive and  (c) the Presbyterian Church in Ireland on the Presbyterian Mutual Society in the last 12 months;
	(2)  what meetings he has had relating to the Presbyterian Mutual Society in the last 12 months;
	(3)  how many meetings he has had with savers from the Presbyterian Mutual Society in the last 12 months; and how many such savers he has met.

Shaun Woodward: The Prime Minister and I have held a number of meetings in recent months with the First and Deputy First Minister to discuss the Presbyterian Mutual Society. Additionally, as well as the meetings of the PMS Working Group created by the Prime Minister, I have had a number of separate discussions with Treasury Ministers and with Ministers representing the Northern Ireland Executive to discuss the matter over the last 12 months. Colleagues on the Ministerial Working Group have met with groups of PMS investors, and I have met separately with a delegation from the Presbyterian Church, as have Treasury Ministers.

Presbyterian Mutual Society

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many letters and e-mails relating to the Presbyterian Mutual Society his Department has received in the last 12 months.

Shaun Woodward: Since 1 April 2009, my Department has received 235 items of correspondence relating to the Presbyterian Mutual Society.

Presbyterian Mutual Society

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether he has met the General Secretary of the Presbyterian Mutual Society in the last 12 months.

Shaun Woodward: No.

Trade Unions

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many days staff of his Department spent on trade union activity in the latest year for which figures are available; and what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of such activity in that year.

Paul Goggins: The Northern Ireland Office (NIO) has one full-time member of staff seconded as a full-time trade union official for the Northern Ireland Public Service Alliance (NIPSA). This official is provided with full-time administrative support. The cost of running this office in 2008-09, including staff costs, was £65,669.09.
	Other members of staff throughout the Department are allowed facility time on an ad-hoc basis representing, NIPSA, First Division Association and the Public and Commercial Service Union. Facility time for trade union representatives is delegated to local Line Management. We do not hold central records of facility time for 2009. Central recording of facility time was introduced on 1 January 2010.

Village Halls

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps are being taken to ensure the security and safety of community halls in Northern Ireland.

Paul Goggins: This is an operational matter for the Chief Constable. I have asked him to reply directly to the hon. Gentleman, and a copy of his letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

International Planned Parenthood Federation

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  how much funding his Department has allocated to the  (a) International Planned Parenthood Federation and  (b) United Nations Population Fund in each year since 1997;
	(2)  whether his Department places restrictions on the use of funds allocated by it to the  (a) International Planned Parenthood Federation and  (b) United Nations Population Fund; what guidance his Department has issued to each such organisation in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Foster: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

United Nations Population Fund

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the United Nations Population Fund in promoting non-coercive approaches to family planning in China since October 2009; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what recent discussions  (a) Ministers and  (b) officials in his Department have had with the United States Administration on its decision to (i) reinstate the US contribution to the United Nations Population Fund and (ii) rescind the Mexico City policy; and if he will make a statement.

Michael Foster: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

WALES

Optics: Technology

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the Optic Research and Incubation Centre at St. Asaph Business Park in the last seven years.

Ian Lucas: I have been asked to reply.
	The Department for Innovation and Skills, has made no assessment of the effectiveness of the Optic Technium at St. Asaph, which we believe is owned by the Welsh Assembly Government and funded by European Objective 1.

CHILDREN, SCHOOLS AND FAMILIES

Becta: Finance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what Becta's budget was in the latest year for which figures are available.

Diana Johnson: Becta's resource funding for the current financial year (2010-11) is £65,751,000. This amount is for Becta's resource and revenue costs only and takes into account any expected efficiency savings. It does not cover capital costs such as capital spending on the national Home Access programme.

Child Minding

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he made of the number of childminders in  (a) England and  (b) each London borough in each quarter of each year from 2005 to 2009.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 6 April 2010
	Ofsted have collected information on the number of registered child care providers and registered child care places available to children under eight years of age on a quarterly basis from March 2003.
	All information, including numbers of childminders, by local authority, is published on Ofsted's website and can be found using the following links:
	Information from 2008 onwards:
	http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Publications-and-research/Browse-all-by/Documents-by-type/Statistics/Childcare-and-early-years/Childcare-providers-and-places/Registered-childcare-providers-and-places-in-England-December-2008-onwards
	Information between September 2006 and August 2008:
	http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Publications-and-research/Browse-all-by/Documents-by-type/Statistics/Childcare-and-early-years/Childcare-providers-and-places/Registered-childcare-providers-and-places-in-England-September-2006-to-August-2008
	Information between March 2003 and June 2006:
	http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Publications-and-research/Browse-all-by/Documents-by-type/Statistics/Childcare-and-early-years/Childcare-providers-and-places/Registered-childcare-providers-and-places-in-England-March-2003-June-2006

Children in Care

Hilary Armstrong: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what progress has been made on the pilots in two areas of the country on introducing pedagogy in working with children in care.

Dawn Primarolo: The social pedagogy pilots are progressing well. All the children's homes have been recruited, including those homes which will not recruit pedagogues and will therefore provide a comparison. The final recruitment round for social pedagogues has also just finished. The pilots are providing some good examples of creative work with children and young people and learning is emerging about the importance of a shared daily life within the home and the opportunities which that offers for relationship building through group activities. The evaluation contract has been awarded to the Universities of Bristol and York and will report in 2012.

Children in Care

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what formula is used to decide the amount of funding provided to local authorities for children taken into care by social services; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Children in care are funded by local authorities who are funded via the local government funding system. There is no formula that sets a national amount that should be spent on children's social care. The level of spending on children in care is decided by each local authority based on local circumstances and priorities.

Children: Day Care

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what information his Department holds on the number of childcare providers in  (a) Chorley constituency and  (b) Lancashire who take part in the childcare voucher scheme.

Stephen Timms: I have been asked to reply.
	The information requested is not available, as employers and employees are not required to report the provision of tax exempt child care vouchers.
	However, research commissioned by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) in 2005, by the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) and available at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/research/research-report23.htm
	estimates the proportion of employers that offer Employer Supported Childcare (ESC) split by Government office region (Table A.7, Appendix A, page 19).
	These numbers should be treated with caution as the employee take-up rate and use of vouchers as opposed to other forms of ESC would likely vary from region to region and these figures do not account for employees working in one region and living in another. No estimates are made for Chorley constituency or Lancashire.

Children: Day Care

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) maintained and  (b) private, voluntary and independent nurseries have closed in each quarter of the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws) on 13 January 2010,  Official Report, column 1062W.

Children: Day Care

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the number of childminders to have entered the profession in each year since 1997.

Dawn Primarolo: Information is not available specifically on the number of childminders who enter the profession. However, Ofsted have collected information on the number of registered child care providers and registered child care places available to children under eight years of age on a quarterly basis from March 2003.
	All information, including numbers of childminders, by local authority, is published on Ofsted's website and can be found using the following links:
	 Information from 2008 onwards:
	http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Publications-and-research/Browse-all-by/Documents-by-type/Statistics/Childcare-and-early-years/Childcare-providers-and-places/Registered-childcare-providers-and-places-in-England-December-2008-onwards
	 Information between September 2006 and August 2008:
	http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Publications-and-research/Browse-all-by/Documents-by-type/Statistics/Childcare-and-early-years/Childcare-providers-and-places/Registered-childcare-providers-and-places-in-England-September-2006-to-August-2008
	 Information between March 2003 and June 2006:
	http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Publications-and-research/Browse-all-by/Documents-by-type/Statistics/Childcare-and-early-years/Childcare-providers-and-places/Registered-childcare-providers-and-places-in-England-March-2003-June-2006
	In addition, Ofsted has published figures on childminders joining and leaving the register since November 2006, which showed figures for childminders joining and leaving the register between April 2005 and September 2006. These data are shown in each local authority's Early Years Statistical Profile, available via each local authority's page on the Ofsted website:
	http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/oxcare_providers/list_by_la
	With the introduction of the Early Years Foundation Stage in September 2008 Ofsted reviewed its publications and decided to incorporate data on providers joining and leaving registers in its regular quarterly publication on child care providers and places. Ofsted published these datasets together for the first time in January 2010, showing figures of providers joining and leaving the registers between 1 October 2009 and 31 December 2009:
	http://www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-home/Publications-and-research/Browse-all-by/Documents-by-type/Statistics/Childcare-and-early-years/Childcare-providers-and-places/Registered-childcare-providers-and-places-in-England-December-2008-onwards

Children: Day Care

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many childcare places there are in  (a) each London borough and  (b) nationally; and how many such places are required in each of those areas to meet the Government's 2010 target.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on the number of childcare places registered with Ofsted available nationally and in each London borough is shown in the following table.
	In 'Choice for parents: the best start for Children' the Government set out a range of targets and ambitions, to achieve its 10-year childcare strategy, including some to be achieved by 2010. However, many of these were not expressed in terms of delivering a specific number of places.
	The ambition to ensure parents can access suitable childcare places has been met by placing duties on all English local authorities to assess and secure sufficient childcare places in their area for children aged 0-14 (18 for disabled children).
	
		
			  Table: Number( 1)  of child care places( 2)  for children under eight years of age in England and in each London borough-position at 31 December 2009 
			  Region  Places 
			 England 1,321,100 
			   
			  Inner London  
			 City of London 300 
			 Camden 5,500 
			 Hackney 6,000 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 4,300 
			 Haringey 4,900 
			 Islington 4,600 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 3,700 
			 Lambeth 7,300 
			 Lewisham 7,600 
			 Newham 4,800 
			 Southwark 9,000 
			 Tower Hamlets 4,200 
			 Wandsworth 8,300 
			 Westminster 3,800 
			   
			  Outer London  
			 Barking and Dagenham 4,000 
			 Barnet 8,800 
			 Bexley 5,400 
			 Brent 6,000 
			 Bromley 10,300 
			 Croydon 11,000 
			 Ealing 7,800 
			 Enfield 7,200 
			 Greenwich 6,800 
			 Harrow 4,700 
			 Havering 5,000 
			 Hillingdon 6,300 
			 Hounslow 4,900 
			 Kingston upon Thames 4,600 
			 Merton 4,600 
			 Redbridge 6,400 
			 Richmond upon Thames 6,900 
			 Sutton 4,500 
			 Waltham Forest 6,400 
			 (1) Figures have been rounded to the nearest 100. (2) Data Source: Ofsted-total includes childminders, child care on non-domestic premises, child care on domestic premises and home child carer.

Children: Day Care

Maria Miller: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much Ofsted received in registration fees from all child care settings in 2008-09.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 6 April 2010
	 This is a matter for Ofsted. The Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and copies of her reply will be placed in the House Libraries.

Children: Day Care

Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many childcare places have been created in Preston since 1997.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on the number of childcare places is not available below local authority level.

Children: Mental Health

Charles Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what account the Targeted Mental Health in Schools programme takes of needs related to emotional well-being of children with  (a) a learning disability,  (b) an autistic spectrum disorder,  (c) a physical disability and  (d) a sensory disability.

Dawn Primarolo: The Targeted Mental Health in Schools Programme (TaMHS) builds on the existing universal approaches to supporting emotional well-being that schools are already using, such as social and environmental aspects of learning, by offering targeted therapeutic interventions for individuals or groups of children at risk of developing mental health problems. Funded by the DCSF by £60 million from 2008 to 2011, all local authorities are now involved in offering the programme within school clusters that are participating. The inclusion of special schools is particularly encouraged within the conditions of grant.
	TaMHS is focused on identifying the children who may be vulnerable to mental health issues and need additional support, and offering them appropriate evidence-based interventions. While the programme is not designed to replicate or replace other funded support (such as through a statement of Special educational needs) all children's needs should be considered equally when identifying who should be offered targeted interventions through TaMHS. Each child's individual circumstances, including whether they have additional needs, and any funded support that they already receive, will be taken into account when deciding what additional support or interventions might be most appropriate.

Children: Sight Impaired

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent representations he has received on the introduction of testing of school pupils for colour blindness.

Dawn Primarolo: The Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families has not received any recent representations on the introduction of testing for colour vision impairments in schools.

Children: Methadone and Protection

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Sheffield, Heeley, Meg Munn of 17 December 2008,  Official Report, column 817W, on methadone, if he will take steps to enable the number of child deaths subject to serious case review which are methadone-related to be calculated.

Dawn Primarolo: Local authorities should notify Ofsted where a death or serious injury occurs and abuse or neglect is known or suspected to be a factor (and so may lead to the commissioning of a Serious Case Review). The precise cause and nature of death may not always be known at the time of the notification, and could change after further investigations are carried out such as a post-mortem or coroner's inquest.
	Information held by the Department for Children, Schools and Families is provided by Ofsted and is based on available information at the point of notification by the local authority. Records are sometimes updated if further information is received on the cause of death but this is not undertaken systematically. We have no present plans to extend procedures or the operation of the relevant database in the way suggested. However, making use of the database and of individual anonymised SCRs the authors of the report 'Understanding Serious Case Reviews and their Impact: A Biennial Analysis of Serious Case Reviews 2005-07', published in June 2009, suggest that:
	A small number of deaths (fewer than six) were as a result of the child ingesting their parent's drug, most often methadone.

Children's Centres: Publicity

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how much was spent on communications and publicity for Sure Start centres in each year since 2004; how much he plans to spend in 2009-10; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how many changes of design have taken place for Sure Start Children's Centre signage since 2004; what the reasons were for each change; and if he will make a statement;
	(3)  how many promotional leaflets for Sure Start Children's Centres were sent out by door drop in each financial year since 2004; how many are planned for 2009-10; in which  (a) postcode areas and  (b) local authority wards such door drops have taken place in each financial year since 2004; and if he will make a statement;
	(4)  how much was spent on radio advertising for Sure Start Children's Centres in each financial year since 2004; how much expenditure is planned for 2009-10; and if he will make a statement;
	(5)  how much was spent on press advertisements for Sure Start Children's Centres in each financial year since 2004; how much expenditure is planned for 2009-10; and if he will make a statement;
	(6)  how much was spent on creative development of advertising for Sure Start Children's Centres in each financial year since 2004; how much expenditure is planned for 2009-10; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is as follows:
	 301509
	On 16 March, the Prime Minister announced that the Government had met its target for 3,500 Sure Start Children's Centres. It is important that all families with young children are aware of the range of services available, and where their local children's centre is. The Department undertook analysis in early 2009 of current research which highlighted a lack of awareness about the range of services available or that it is a universal service. The Department has therefore run the first ever national communications campaign to boost awareness of children's centres which commenced September 2009 and early evaluation is positive-with an increase of over 40 per cent. in the number of parents (in areas targeted by the campaign) who know about their local children's centre.
	The amount spent on communications and publicity for children's centres in each year is set out in the following table. It is not possible to provide figures back to 2004, because children's centre communications activity was incorporated into wider communications budgets covering early years and childcare. The amount spent in 2009-10 is higher than previous years as 2009-10 is when the Department ran its first national communications campaign for Sure Start Children's Centres, and represents 0.29 per cent. of the total 2009-10 programme budget for Sure Start Children's Centres.
	
		
			  Table 1: Specific Sure Start Children's Centres related communications to the public 
			  Financial Year  Amount (£) 
			 2007-08 35,800 
			 2008-09 188,100 
			 2009-10(1) 3,418,600 
			 (1) As at 23 March 2010 
		
	
	 301510
	Since 2004, there have been two updates to the branding guidelines for Sure Start Children's Centres, both of which set out expectations for how external signage should look. The first update was in March 2006, which established Sure Start as the overall brand for all services for 0 to 5-year-olds and created a new Sure Start logo. A further update to branding guidelines was made in March 2009, to reflect the establishment of the national network of Sure Start Children's Centres.
	 301511
	As part of the national communications campaign an estimated 2,400,000 leaflets advertising Sure Start Children's Centres were sent to specific postcodes via door drops (see Tables 2 and 3). The postcodes in Table 2 were selected according to population density and deprivation and those in Table 3 according to rurality and deprivation. We do not hold details of which local authority wards these postcodes represent and have supplied details of the upper tier local authority in Tables 2 and 3. A copy of tables 2 and 3 will be placed in the Libraries. Local authorities and individual centres may have conducted their own door drop leaflet distribution, but this information is not collected by the Department. Door drop leaflet distribution is an effective way of targeting potential users of children's centres among families who may be less likely to access children centres.
	 301512
	National radio advertising for Sure Start Children's Centres started for the first time in 2009-10. The total amount spent on radio advertising in 2009-10 was £951,800. Radio advertising is effective at building awareness on a national level and reaching out to parents who may be unaware of children's centres and the services they offer.
	 301513
	Press advertising for Sure Start Children's Centres started in 2008-09 and 2009-10. The total amount spent on press advertising in 2008-2009 was £150,000; and in 2009-10 it was £831,600. Press advertising is particularly useful in conveying the range of services available at children's centres.
	 301514
	The Department commissioned specialist creative development of advertising for Sure Start Children's Centres in 2009-10 only. The total amount spent was £87,300 in 2009-10. The creative development is a crucial part of the planning process. This research helps us to understand whether the advertisements are clear and engaging for the audience before they are rolled out nationally. This ensures that we can receive the optimum return on investment.

Children's Commissioner for England

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the cost to the public purse was of the operation of the office of the Children's Commissioner for England in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 7 April 2010
	 For the financial year 2009-10 the Office of the Children's Commissioner for England received £2,669,818.00 grant in aid from the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

Curriculum: Expenditure

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much  (a) his Department and  (b) the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency spent on developing the National Curriculum in the latest year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: The latest financial year for which figures are available is 2008-09. During that year the Department spent £317,000 on developing the national curriculum by providing support to the Independent Review of the Primary Curriculum.
	During the same period the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency spent £1.6 million on developing the national curriculum in support of the Independent Review of the Primary Curriculum.

Departmental Buildings

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department has spent on rooms for staff leisure in each of the last five years.

Diana Johnson: The Department for Children, Schools and Families was created on 28 June 2007. Since then expenditure on rooms for staff leisure has been as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
			   2007-08  2008-09  2009-10 
			 London Site Fitness Centre Refurbishment - 327,538 - 
			 London Site Fitness Centre Annual Occupancy Costs 93,511 191,548 299,722 
			 Sheffield Site Fitness Centre Annual Occupancy Costs 2,253 2,345 2,138

Departmental Consultants

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much consultants employed by his Department and its agencies have been paid  (a) in total and  (b) in reimbursable expenses since its inception.

Diana Johnson: From the year 2005-06 the figures set out in the table reflect comparable annual consultancy costs for DCSF (from FY 2007-08) and its predecessor Department (DFES) covering both administration and programme costs:
	
		
			  Expenditure on consultants 
			   £ million 
			 2005-06 21.5 
			 2006-07 45.1 
			 2007-08 61.4 
			 2008-09 59.2 
		
	
	Figures for prior years are available for administration costs only as these were not recorded centrally before November 2004.
	Figures for reimbursable expenses are not recorded separately to consultancy costs and cannot be provided.
	These figures cover the Department itself, we do not separately record the costs incurred by our agencies and NDPBs and are therefore unable to provide this detail.

Departmental Consultants

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department spent on consultancy in the latest year for which figures are available.

Diana Johnson: Figures for the former Department for Education and Skills show that it spent the following sums from administration costs (the Department's internal running costs) on consultancy from 1997:
	
		
			   £ million 
			 1997-98 3.9 
			 1998-99 5.0 
			 1999-2000 3.7 
			 2000-01 4.3 
			 2001-02 5.0 
			 2002-03 4.0 
			 2003-04 4.7 
			 2004-05 3.9 
		
	
	The costs of consultancy charged to programmes budgets (supporting external front line delivery) before November 2004 was not recorded centrally, and could now be provided only at disproportionate cost. The total cost of consultancy charged to programmes from November to March 2004-05 was £4.4 million.
	From the year 2005-06, consultancy costs as a whole have been captured. Set out in the following table are comparable annual consultancy costs for the Department.
	
		
			  Expenditure on consultants 
			   £ million 
			 2005-06 21.5 
			 2006-07 45.1 
			 2007-08 61.4 
			 2008-09 59.2

Departmental Information Officers

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what the cost to his Department was of employing press and media officers in the last 12 months for which figures are available; and what the cost to his Department was of employing such staff in the financial year 1996-97, expressed in current prices.

Diana Johnson: The Department employs 26 people in the press office.
	The total salary cost for the Department's press office in the financial year 2008-09 was £1,350,713.10.
	In the financial year 1996-97 the Department employed 19 people in the press office at an actual cost of £702,000. It is not possible to express this in real terms except at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Internet

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many complaints his Department received on difficulties using its website in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how much his Department spent on external website design consultants in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: The requested information cannot be provided without incurring disproportionate cost.

Departmental Pay

John Mason: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what  (a) bonuses and  (b) incentives have been paid to (i) consultants and (ii) contractors engaged by non-departmental public bodies for which his Department is responsible in each of the last three years.

Diana Johnson: Bonuses and incentives to consultants and contractors are a matter for the non-departmental public bodies themselves. Central records are not held and could be obtained at only disproportionate cost.

Departmental Public Expenditure

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what proportion of his Department's expenditure under each line of Table 8.4 of his Department's Report for 2009 is included in the 75 per cent. of the budget to be protected in 2011-12 and 2012-13.

Diana Johnson: holding answer 16 March 2010
	The pre-Budget report confirmed that from 2011-13 funding for Sure Start will continue to rise in line with inflation; funding for 16 to 19 learning will rise by 0.9 per cent. year on year with an extra £202 million this year to meet our September Guarantee; and funding for schools will increase by 0.7 per cent. in real terms, which at current inflation levels will mean a cash increase of 2.7 per cent.
	This means that 75 per cent. of the DCSF budget has been protected. The document, 'Investing for the Future, Protecting the Front Line: School Funding 2010', published on 15 March, showed how the DCSF budget breaks down in 2010-11 into the front-line areas protected in the PBR and the remaining areas from which the Department is finding £500 million savings in the 2011-13 period. A further breakdown will be provided when we publish our annual report later in the year.

Departmental Public Relations

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with which public relations companies  (a) his Department,  (b) each (i) non-departmental public body and (ii) executive agency for which his Department is responsible and  (c) other bodies sponsored by his Department have had contracts in each year since 2004.

Diana Johnson: Public relations agencies are employed for specific communications tasks, most commonly working alongside our press office to provide campaign support in local, regional and specialist media. The Department's expenditure on public relations for complete financial years, since its formation in June 2007, is outlined in the following table:
	
		
			   Total spend (£) 
			 2007-08 2,333,000 
			 2008-09 4,023,403 
		
	
	Increased expenditure for 2008-09 is related to the 14 to 19 reform and the diploma, both of which were launched in 2008
	The other requested information cannot be obtained without incurring disproportionate cost.

Departmental Theft

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what steps his Department is taking to deter theft from within the Department.

Diana Johnson: DCSF, like all Departments, aims to have effective security measures in place to guard against theft and other threats. Measures to deter, prevent and detect theft are an essential feature of the Department's protective security controls. These controls reflect the standards set out in the HMG Security Policy Framework (SPF) issued by Cabinet Office and available online at:
	www.cabinet-office.gov.uk/spf.aspx
	It would not be appropriate to provide details of specific controls as this could undermine their effectiveness.

Departmental Travel

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much was spent on first-class travel for  (a) Ministers and  (b) staff of each grade in (i) his Department and (ii) its agencies in the last 12 months.

Diana Johnson: No Ministers or DCSF officials took first- class air travel during the period April 2009 to March 2010.
	DCSF agency officials spent £8,640 on first class air travel during this period.
	DCSF Ministers spent £8,146 on first class rail travel during this period.
	DCSF officials spent £2,447,616 on first class rail travel during this period.
	DCSF agency officials spent £3,816,469 on first class rail travel during this period.
	The data have been provided by the Department's contractor for travel booking, Carlson Wagonlit Travel.

Devolved Schools Grant

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families for what purposes the retained element of the devolved schools grant will be used; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: In accordance with the school finance (England) regulations, local authorities in England are permitted to deduct funding from their schools budget for the purposes of central expenditure. Schedule 2 of the school finance (England) regulations sets out the areas of expenditure that local authorities can retain centrally such as: special educational needs provision, pupil referral units, behaviour support services, education out of school, expenditure on the provision of nursery education other than in maintained schools, threshold and performance pay for teachers' salaries, expenditure on the administration of the local authority's admissions and appeals system for their schools, and school contingencies.

Free School Meals: A-Levels

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of pupils eligible for free school meals were entered for A-levels in each subject in 2009.

Vernon Coaker: The information requested is given in the following table. Please note that this information covers pupils in school sixth forms only; pupils entered for A-level examinations in sixth form or further education colleges are excluded from the figures.
	
		
			   Number of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals entered in examination  Percentage of pupils known to be eligible for free school meals entered in examination 
			 Biology 794 14.1 
			 Biology: Human 23 0.4 
			 Chemistry 652 11.6 
			 Physics 286 5.1 
			 Science: Single award 0 0.0 
			 Science: Electronics (1)- (1)- 
			 Science: Environmental 3 0.1 
			 Science: Geology 6 0.1 
			 Mathematics 836 14.8 
			 Mathematics (Pure) 0 0.0 
			 Mathematics (Statistics) 6 0.1 
			 Mathematics (Further) 64 1.1 
			 Additional Mathematics 0 0.0 
			 Computer Studies/Computing 38 0.7 
			 Information Technology 171 3.0 
			 Business Studies 340 6.0 
			 Business Studies and   
			 Economics 29 0.5 
			 Home Economics (1)- (1)- 
			 Art and Design 198 3.5 
			 Art and Design (Graphics) 36 0.6 
			 Art and Design (Photography) 102 1.8 
			 Art and Design (Textiles) 62 1.1 
			 Art and Design (3-D studies) 7 0.1 
			 Art and Design (Critical Studies) (1)- (1)- 
			 Fine Art 226 4.0 
			 History of Art 0 0.0 
			 Geography 223 4.0 
			 World Development 3 0.1 
			 History 573 10.2 
			 Economics 188 3.3 
			 Religious Studies 480 8.5 
			 Archaeology 0 0.0 
			 Law 216 3.8 
			 Logic/Philosophy 28 0.5 
			 Government and Politics 178 3.2 
			 Psychology 901 16.0 
			 Sociology 750 13.3 
			 English 205 3.6 
			 English Language 250 4.4 
			 English Literature 863 15.3 
			 Drama and Theatre 280 5.0 
			 Communication Studies 21 0.4 
			 Performing Studies 27 0.5 
			 Media/Film/Television Studies 542 9.6 
			 Film Studies 80 1.4 
			 Dutch 14 0.2 
			 French 124 2.2 
			 German 47 0.8 
			 Italian 5 0.1 
			 Modern Greek (1)- (1)- 
			 Portuguese 4 0.1 
			 Spanish 50 0.9 
			 Arabic 30 0.5 
			 Bengali 4 0.1 
			 Chinese 7 0.1 
			 Gujarati (1)- (1)- 
			 Japanese 0 0.0 
			 Modern Hebrew (1)- (1)- 
			 Punjabi 5 0.1 
			 Polish (1)- (1)- 
			 Russian 4 0.1 
			 Turkish 20 0.4 
			 Urdu 46 0.8 
			 Persian 10 0.2 
			 Ancient History 3 0.1 
			 Classical Civilisation 29 0.5 
			 Greek 0 0.0 
			 Latin (1)- (1)- 
			 Other Classical Languages 0 0.0 
			 Music 45 0.8 
			 Music Technology 32 0.6 
			 Sport/Physical Education Studies 167 3.0 
			 Dance 34 0.6 
			 Accounting/Finance 29 0.5 
			 General Studies 530 9.4 
			 Critical Thinking 21 0.4 
			 Design/Tech and Food 27 0.5 
			 Design/Tech and Systems 4 0.1 
			 Design/Tech and Production 221 3.9 
			 (1) Figures have been suppressed to preserve anonymity.  Note: Includes maintained schools only including CTCs and academies.

GCE A-level

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils in  (a) maintained,  (b) independent and  (c) comprehensive schools achieved three or more A grades at A-level in 2009.

Iain Wright: The information for 2009 and 1997 is as follows:
	
		
			  2009 (provisional) 
			   Number of candidates achieving three or more A grades at GCE/Applied GCE A-level and Double Awards  Percentage of candidates achieving three or more A grades at GCE/Applied GCE A-level and Double Awards 
			 Comprehensive schools(1) 9,600 8.0 
			 All maintained schools(2) 15,300 10.4 
			 Independent schools(3) 11,400 31.9 
			
			 All schools 26,700 14.6 
		
	
	
		
			  1997 
			   Number of candidates achieving three or more A grades at GCE A-level  Percentage of candidates achieving three or more A grades at GCE A-level 
			 Comprehensive schools(1) 4,300 4.7 
			 All maintained schools(2) 6,400 5.9 
			 Independent schools(3) 6,100 16.9 
			
			 All schools 15,500 6.7 
			 (1) Includes city technology colleges and academies.  (2) Includes the results for community and foundation special schools, hospital schools and pupil referral units.  (3) Includes non-maintained special schools.   Notes:  1. Figures relate to 16 to 18-year-olds (age at start of academic year, i.e. 31 August).  2. 2009 Figures are provisional.  3. Applied A-levels and Double Awards did not exist in 1997. 
		
	
	The 2009 information is derived from table 1 of the GCE/Applied GCE A/AS and Equivalent Examination Results in England, 2008/09 Statistical First Release, found at the following link:
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000881/index.shtml
	Figures for 1997 are derived from the Achievement and Attainment Tables data.

GCSE

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of pupils did not gain one or more GCSEs, excluding equivalents, at grade  (a) G,  (b) E,  (c) D and  (d) C or above in 2009.

Vernon Coaker: The information required is given in the following table:
	
		
			   Number and proportion of pupils who did not gain one or more GCSEs, excluding equivalents at the selected grades 
			   1997  2009 
			  Grades  Number  Proportion (percentage)  Number  Proportion (percentage) 
			 G or above 45,074 7.7 19,867 3.1 
			 E or above 65,329 11.1 37,813 6.0 
			 D or above 101,822 17.4 65,429 10.3 
			 C or above 173,197 29.5 119,687 18.9 
			  Source: Achievement and Attainment Tables. 
		
	
	The data for 1997 relate to pupils aged 15 and for 2009 relate to pupils at the end of Key Stage 4.
	The figures are cumulative, in that if a pupil is included as not gaining G or above, they will also be included in the data as not receiving E or above, D or above and C or above.

GCSE

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many  (a) maintained schools and  (b) comprehensive schools in each local authority area entered no students for GCSE examinations for (i) physics, (ii) chemistry, (iii) biology and (iv) all three in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 25 February 2010
	The requested figures are given in the following table 2009.
	This answer has been derived from the achievement and attainment tables data.
	The majority of pupils take Science GCSE (also referred to as core science) and Additional Science GCSE. This combination of science GCSEs provides a perfectly good foundation for further study of physics, chemistry and biology at A level.
	The number of maintained schools that had pupils that were entered for all three sciences has increased from just over 600 in 2002 to just over 1,500 in 2009.
	The Government have introduced a statutory entitlement for all pupils in maintained schools to be able to study at least two science GCSEs, specifically this includes core and additional science or the three separate science GCSEs of physics, chemistry and biology.
	There is a further non-statutory entitlement that those pupils who have achieved at least level 6 at key stage 3 will be given the opportunity to study triple science at GCSE either at their own school or through collaborative arrangements with other schools and colleges.
	Since September 2008 all specialist science schools have to offer triple science to at least all pupils achieving level 6+ at the end of key stage 3. Since September 2009 we have expected all engineering and technology colleges to offer triple science, and expect all mathematics and computing colleges to do so from September 2010.
	
		
			   Number of comprehensive schools entering no pupils at the end of key stage 4 for GCSEs in  Number of maintained mainstream schools entering no pupils at the end of key stage 4 for GCSEs in 
			  LA name  Biology  Chemistry  Physics  All three separate sciences  Biology  Chemistry  Physics  All three separate sciences 
			 City of London 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Camden 2 3 3 3 2 3 3 3 
			 Greenwich 6 7 7 7 6 7 7 7 
			 Hackney 4 6 6 6 4 6 6 6 
			 Hammersmith and Fulham 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 Islington 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 Kensington and Chelsea 2 3 4 4 2 3 4 4 
			 Lambeth 2 3 3 3 2 3 3 3 
			 Lewisham 4 4 5 5 4 4 5 5 
			 Southwark 5 7 6 8 5 7 6 8 
			 Tower Hamlets 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Wandsworth 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Westminster 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Barking and Dagenham 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Barnet 7 9 9 9 9 11 11 11 
			 Bexley 4 4 4 4 9 9 9 9 
			 Brent 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Bromley 5 5 4 5 5 5 4 5 
			 Croydon 9 10 10 10 10 11 11 11 
			 Ealing 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 Enfield 8 9 9 9 9 10 10 10 
			 Haringey 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 Harrow 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Havering 10 9 10 10 10 9 10 10 
			 Hillingdon 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Hounslow 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 
			 Kingston upon Thames 0 0 0 0 3 4 3 4 
			 Merton 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Newham 10 10 11 11 10 10 11 11 
			 Redbridge 3 5 5 5 3 5 5 5 
			 Richmond upon Thames 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 
			 Sutton 4 5 5 5 4 5 5 5 
			 Waltham Forest 12 12 12 13 12 12 12 13 
			 Birmingham 38 38 38 39 38 38 38 39 
			 Coventry 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 
			 Dudley 14 13 13 14 14 13 13 14 
			 Sandwell 12 11 12 12 12 11 12 12 
			 Solihull 6 7 7 7 6 7 7 7 
			 Walsall 7 8 8 9 7 8 8 9 
			 Wolverhampton 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 13 
			 Knowsley 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 
			 Liverpool 14 14 13 14 14 14 13 14 
			 St. Helens 6 7 7 7 6 7 7 7 
			 Sefton 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 14 
			 Wirral 4 4 4 4 7 7 7 7 
			 Bolton 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Bury 9 8 8 9 9 8 8 9 
			 Manchester 14 16 16 16 14 16 16 16 
			 Oldham 7 7 7 8 7 7 7 8 
			 Rochdale 10 10 9 11 10 10 9 11 
			 Salford 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 
			 Stockport 6 7 7 7 6 7 7 7 
			 Tameside 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 
			 Trafford 0 0 0 0 9 9 10 10 
			 Wigan 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 
			 Barnsley 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 
			 Doncaster 8 9 9 9 8 9 9 9 
			 Rotherham 6 6 6 7 6 6 6 7 
			 Sheffield 13 14 12 14 13 14 12 14 
			 Bradford 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 
			 Calderdale 7 7 7 7 8 8 8 8 
			 Kirklees 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 
			 Leeds 16 17 16 17 16 17 16 17 
			 Wakefield 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 
			 Gateshead 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 North Tyneside 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 South Tyneside 3 3 4 4 4 4 5 5 
			 Sunderland 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Isles of Scilly 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Bath and North East Somerset 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Bristol, City of 7 7 8 8 7 7 8 8 
			 North Somerset 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 
			 South Gloucestershire 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 
			 Hartlepool 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Middlesbrough 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Redcar and Cleveland 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Stockton-on-Tees 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 
			 Kingston upon Hull, City of 11 10 10 11 11 10 10 11 
			 East Riding of Yorkshire 6 6 6 7 6 6 6 7 
			 North East Lincolnshire 6 6 5 6 6 6 5 6 
			 North Lincolnshire 5 5 3 5 5 5 3 5 
			 North Yorkshire 20 20 21 21 21 23 24 24 
			 York 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 Luton 5 6 6 6 5 6 6 6 
			 Bedford 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 
			 Central Bedfordshire 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Buckinghamshire 0 0 0 0 19 20 20 20 
			 Milton Keynes 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Derbyshire 21 23 23 23 21 23 23 23 
			 Derby 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Dorset 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 
			 Poole 2 2 2 2 4 4 4 4 
			 Bournemouth 2 2 2 2 4 7 7 7 
			 Durham 27 27 26 27 27 27 26 27 
			 Darlington 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 East Sussex 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 
			 Brighton and Hove 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Hampshire 24 25 25 25 24 25 25 25 
			 Portsmouth 5 6 6 7 5 6 6 7 
			 Southampton 7 7 6 7 7 7 6 7 
			 Leicestershire 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Leicester 8 8 8 8 9 9 9 9 
			 Rutland 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 
			 Staffordshire 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 24 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 8 8 8 9 8 8 8 9 
			 Wiltshire 10 10 10 10 14 14 14 14 
			 Swindon 2 5 5 5 2 5 5 5 
			 Bracknell Forest 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 
			 Windsor and Maidenhead 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 West Berkshire 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Reading 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Slough 1 1 1 1 7 8 8 8 
			 Wokingham 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 
			 Cambridgeshire 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Peterborough 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 Halton 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Warrington 5 5 5 6 5 5 5 6 
			 Devon 13 16 16 16 13 16 16 16 
			 Plymouth 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 Torbay 5 5 5 5 7 7 7 7 
			 Essex 29 29 29 30 29 29 29 30 
			 Southend-on-sea 4 5 4 5 6 7 6 7 
			 Thurrock 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 6 
			 Herefordshire 8 9 9 10 8 9 9 10 
			 Worcestershire 13 13 14 14 13 13 15 15 
			 Kent 8 12 12 12 38 52 49 52 
			 Medway 1 1 1 1 9 10 11 12 
			 Lancashire 31 36 36 38 32 37 37 39 
			 Blackburn with Darwen 7 7 6 7 7 7 6 7 
			 Blackpool 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 7 
			 Nottinghamshire 23 23 23 23 23 23 23 23 
			 Nottingham 10 11 12 12 10 11 12 12 
			 Shropshire 13 14 14 14 13 14 14 14 
			 Telford and Wrekin 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 
			 Cheshire East 7 7 7 7 8 8 8 8 
			 Cheshire West and Chester 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 10 
			 Cornwall 11 12 12 12 11 12 12 12 
			 Cumbria 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 21 
			 Gloucestershire 17 16 16 17 18 17 17 18 
			 Hertfordshire 31 31 31 31 31 31 31 31 
			 Isle of Wight 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 
			 Lincolnshire 8 9 9 10 26 28 29 30 
			 Norfolk 24 26 26 26 24 26 26 26 
			 Northamptonshire 12 11 11 12 12 11 11 12 
			 Northumberland 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 
			 Oxfordshire 15 16 16 16 15 16 16 16 
			 Somerset 14 15 14 15 14 15 14 15 
			 Suffolk 14 17 17 17 14 17 17 17 
			 Surrey 14 17 16 17 14 17 16 17 
			 Warwickshire 9 10 10 10 12 13 14 14 
			 West Sussex 15 16 16 16 15 16 16 16

GCSE

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of pupils in each local authority area did not attain any GCSEs above grade D in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: The information requested for pupils attending maintained schools (including city technology colleges and academies) has been placed in the Libraries.

GCSE

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils not eligible for free school meals attended schools at which fewer than 30 per cent. of pupils achieved five A* to C grades at GCSE including English and mathematics but excluding equivalents in 2009.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 1 March 2010
	In 2009, there were 242,990 pupils not known to be eligible for free school meals attending schools at which fewer than 30 per cent. of pupils achieved five A* to C grades at GCSE including English and mathematics but excluding equivalents(1) (includes post 16 pupils).
	(1) Includes maintained mainstream schools (including academies) with more than 10 pupils that were published in the 2009 Achievement and Attainment tables. Qualifications include GCSEs, GCSE short courses, GCSE double awards, vocational single and double GCSEs and AS levels.

GCSE

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether his Department has made an assessment for benchmarking purposes of educational attainment at GCSE in England in comparison with attainment of children of the same age in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Vernon Coaker: The Department does not benchmark educational attainment for England against that for Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.
	The Department does publish data on educational attainment at GCSE across the UK and for England. Equivalent data for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is the responsibility of, and published by, the respective devolved Administrations.
	The following table gives a breakdown of educational attainment at GCSE across the UK since 2005:
	
		
			  GCE, GCSE, SCE/NQ and vocational qualifications obtained by pupils( 1)  and students (in their last year of compulsory education) 
			  Percentage of pupils achieving GCSE or equivalent( 2)  2005/06  2006/07  2007/08 
			 5 or more grades A*-C(3) 59.0 61.3 64.4 
			 5 or more grades A*-C including English and maths - - 47.7 
			 (1) Pupils aged 15 at the start of the academic year; pupils in Year S4 in Scotland. From 2004/05, pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 in England. (2) From 2007/08 data are for 5+ A*-C, 5+ A*-C including English and Maths and Any Passes. (3) Standard Grades 1-3/Intermediate 2 A-C/Intermediate 1 A in Scotland.  Source: Education and Training Statistics for the United Kingdom 2009 
		
	
	The following table gives a breakdown for England:
	
		
			  GCSE and equivalent qualifications obtained by pupils at the end of Key Stage 4 
			  Percentage of pupils achieving GCSE or equivalent  2005/06  2006/07  2007/08  2008/09 
			 5 or more grades A*-C 59.0 61.4 65.3 70.0 
			 5 or more grades A*-C including English and maths 45.6 46.3 47.6 49.8

GCSE: Disadvantaged

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils eligible for free school meals achieved  (a) one or more A to G grades,  (b) three or more A to C grades and  (c) three or more A grades at A-level in 2003.

Vernon Coaker: Figures for 2003 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Pupils eligible for free school meals achieving  Number  Percentage 
			  (a) one or more A to E grades 4,610 93.4 
			  (b) three or more A to C grades 845 17.1 
			  (c) three or more A grades 94 1.9 
		
	
	Percentages indicated are of all students eligible for free school meals who were entered for at least one GCEA/CE/Applied A Level and Double Awards in 2003.
	The figures relate to 16 to 18-year-olds (age at start of academic year, i.e. 31 August 2002) in maintained schools only who were eligible for free school meals. The figures do not include the achievement of students in further education sector colleges previously eligible for free school meals.

Gifted Children

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of pupils with gifted and talented status did not sit any A-levels in  (a) 1997,  (b) 2003,  (c) 2006 and  (d) the most recent year for which figures are available.

Iain Wright: The Department has collected information about individual pupil's Gifted and Talented status in Secondary schools since 2006. The information available to answer this question is provided in the following table. Please note that this information covers pupils in school sixth forms only; pupils entered for A-level examinations in sixth form or further education colleges are excluded from the figures.
	
		
			   Pupils with Gifted and Talented status who did not sit any A-levels in selected years 
			   Number  Percentage 
			 2006 112 1.0 
			 2008 637 2.3 
			 2009 675 2.1 
			  Source: National Pupil Database. 
		
	
	Pupils identified as gifted and talented are defined as
	Children and young people with one or more abilities developed to a level significantly ahead of their year group (or with the potential to develop those abilities).
	Included are students identified for their talent in, for example, creative arts or sports rather than their ability to excel academically.

International Baccalaureate

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many schools offer an International Baccalaureate course; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The Department does not hold information on the courses offered by schools. However, information on the courses entered by students is available.
	69 schools(1) entered students for an International Baccalaureate (IB) during the 2008/09 academic year. A further 22 FE colleges had IB candidates in 2008/09.
	(1) Maintained and independent schools.

International Baccalaureate

Lembit �pik: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of students enrolled in International Baccalaureate courses were entitled to free school meals in the latest year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: As collected in the 2009 autumn school census, 1,679 students were studying International Baccalaureate courses, of these 5.3 per cent. were eligible to receive free school meals (89 students).

Karen Matthews

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent discussions he has had with the Kirklees Safeguarding Children Board on the timetable for the publication of the executive summary of the serious case review of the Karen Matthews case.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 29 March 2010
	 As part of their challenge and support function, officials from the Government office for Yorkshire and the Humber keep in close contact with progress being made by Local Safeguarding Children Boards in their region which are conducting serious case reviews. I understand that the Government office has had a number of discussions with Kirklees Safeguarding Children Board about the timetable for this particular, very complex serious case review. Kirklees Safeguarding Children Board hopes to complete it shortly and to publish the executive summary as soon as they are able to do so, after evaluation by Ofsted.

Languages: GCSE

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils in  (a) comprehensive,  (b) academy and  (c) independent schools were entered for a GCSE in each modern language in the last year for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 2 February 2010
	The information relating to GCSE entries in 2008-09 is given in the following table:
	
		
			   Number of entries in comprehensive schools  Number of entries in academies  Number of entries in independent schools 
			 Welsh (1)- 0 0 
			 Irish (1)- 0 0 
			 Dutch 393 46 30 
			 French 123,942 2,428 26,730 
			 German 52,702 1,024 7,218 
			 Italian 2,415 33 684 
			 Modern Greek 311 15 60 
			 Portuguese 1,134 93 24 
			 Spanish 39,590 1,166 11,228 
			 Arabic 1,325 118 718 
			 Bengali 1,172 66 98 
			 Chinese 959 60 1,280 
			 Gujarati 707 29 114 
			 Japanese 611 0 191 
			 Modern Hebrew 251 0 170 
			 Panjabi 700 48 27 
			 Polish 1,741 117 23 
			 Russian 746 66 630 
			 Turkish 988 84 43 
			 Urdu 3,716 168 911 
			 Persian 364 19 38 
			 All subjects 233,774 5,580 50,217 
			 (1) Figures suppressed due to small numbers  Notes: 1. Figures relate to pupils at the end of key stage 4 in the 2008-09 academic year and include attempts and achievements by these pupils in previous academic years. 2. Entries for academies are also included in the comprehensive schools figures.  Source: Achievement and Attainment Tables data

Literacy: Primary Education

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much his Department spent on  (a) publication and distribution and  (b) training in respect of the Letters and Sounds programme in the last 12 months for which figures are available.

Diana Johnson: The information is as follows:
	 (a) Full costs for 'Letters and Sounds' are detailed as follows. We cannot identify specific figures for publication and distribution. These costs form part of the National Strategies contract funding:
	
		
			  £ 
			  Description  2006-07  2007-08 
			 Project management costs 219,508 79,677 
			 Project costs 851,633 1,313,900 
			 Total 'Letters and Sounds' 1,071,141 1,393,577 
			 Total cost of 'Letters and Sounds' 2,464,718 
		
	
	 (b) Training in respect of 'Letters and Sounds' forms part of the work of the National Strategy's regional consultants, and is included in their contract funding. It is not possible to break down specific costs for this.

National Curriculum Tests

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what proportion of children achieved the national standard in each of the 13 assessment scales of the Foundation Stage Profile assessments in  (a) England and  (b) each London borough in each year since the inception of those assessments.

Dawn Primarolo: holding reply 6 April 2010
	Children who achieve six points or more are deemed to be working securely within the Early Years Foundation Stage Profile. The percentage of children working securely in each of the 13 assessment scales has been published in an annual Statistical First Release since 2005.
	The information available for 2007 to 2009 can be found in the Six plus columns of table A in the additional local authority and Government office region tables of the following Statistical First Releases:
	SFR 32/2007, available at
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000752/index.shtml
	SFR 25/2008, available at
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000812/index.shtml
	and SFR 26/2009, available at
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000879/index.shtml
	The information for 2005 and 2006 can be found in table B of the additional local authority tables of the following Statistical First Releases:
	SFR 03/2006, available at
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000634/index.shtml
	and SFR 03/2007, available at:
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000704/index.shtml
	Please note that care should be taken when comparing 2005 and 2006 figures between local authorities, as the assessments were not yet well established which may have caused inconsistencies in moderation.

Opposition

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether his Department has undertaken costings of the policies of the  (a) Conservative Party and  (b) Liberal Democrat Party at the request of Ministers or special advisers in the last 36 months.

Diana Johnson: Her Majesty's Treasury coordinates or clears any costing of Opposition policies. I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury on 30 March 2010,  Official Report, column 1044W.

Pre-school Education

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many nurseries there were in  (a) England and  (b) each London borough in each year from 1997 to 2009; and what proportion of those nurseries in each area was assessed by Ofsted as inadequate in each of those years.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 6 April 2010
	 This is a matter for Ofsted. The Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert will write to the hon. Member and copies of her reply will be placed in the Library.

Schools: Employment

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families if he will issue guidance to school governors on their individual liability in respect of decisions on the employment of staff.

Vernon Coaker: The Governors Guide to the Law is a guidance document produced by the Department and issued to governing bodies of all maintained schools to provide advice in relation to their statutory roles and responsibilities. This guidance is reviewed and updated biannually to ensure governors are provided with accurate, up to date information. Chapter 3 of the Guide provides specific guidance in relation to governor liability.

Schools: Finance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Surrey Heath of 9 September 2009,  Official Report, columns 1937-8W, on schools, what proportion of the expenditure on curriculum is received by schools; and if he will make a statement.

Diana Johnson: In 2010-2011, £3.5 million will be allocated directly to schools to support the delivery of the science curriculum and at least £21 million for primary languages. However, all planned expenditure on schools will assist them in the delivery of the curriculum.

Schools: Inspections

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how much on average an Ofsted inspection of  (a) a nursery,  (b) a children's centre,  (c) a primary school,  (d) a secondary school and  (e) local authority children's services cost in the latest period for which figures are available.

Vernon Coaker: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, will write to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply will be placed in the Libraries.

Schools: Radicalism

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  on how many occasions Ofsted undertook an additional school inspection in response to concerns about the effect of possible links with extremism on the standard of education provided in a school in the last five years; and who is responsible for the decision to undertake such an inspection;
	(2)  on what occasions  (a) Ofsted and  (b) his Department has received information from each source on possible links between a school and extremism in the last 10 years; and what steps were taken in response to that information on each occasion;
	(3)  on what statutory basis Ofsted undertakes an additional or targeted inspection in response to concerns about the effect of possible links with extremism on the standard of education provided in a school; and what the  (a) duration and  (b) remit is of such inspections;
	(4)  what  (a) guidance and  (b) criteria are used by Ofsted to determine whether to undertake an additional inspection in response to concerns about the effect of possible links with extremism on the standard of education provided in a school;
	(5)  what definition Ofsted uses of extremism in assessing information on possible links between schools and extremism; and what criteria it uses to classify a school as having links with extremism.

Diana Johnson: holding answer 30 March 2010
	Ofsted is required to carry out regular inspections of all maintained schools under section 5 of the Education Act 2005. All independent schools are inspected regularly against the standards for independent schools under s. 162A of the Education Act 2002.
	In addition, the Secretary of State may require Ofsted to inspect a school outside of the routine programme of inspections under section 8(1) of the Education Act 2005 and section 162A of the Education Act 2002.
	Section 8(2) of the Education Act 2002 enables the chief inspector to inspect a maintained school where she is not otherwise required to do so, including in response to a parental complaint.
	In the case of independent schools, additional inspection visits can be commissioned by the Department if there is evidence that a school might not be meeting any of the independent school standards including concerns about the quality of education or procedures for safeguarding children. Any remedial action or deregistration would take place on the basis that one or more standard had not been met. If there was evidence of that the law may have breached, Ofsted would liaise with the police and other authorities as appropriate.
	The duration and focus of an additional inspection depends on the individual circumstances but must relate to Ofsted's remit and the legal requirements relating to maintained or independent schools. There is no statutory definition of extremism or extremist organisations other than those proscribed under the Terrorism Act 2000. Therefore neither Ofsted nor DCSF are able to keep systematic central records of allegations about extremism, nor of alleged links between schools and extremist organisations.
	Independent schools are inspected against regulatory standards which include a standard governing the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils. This requires independent schools to enable pupils to distinguish right from wrong and respect the law and assist pupils to acquire an appreciation of and respect for their own and other cultures in a way that promotes tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions.
	Routine inspections of maintained schools include an assessment of the spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of pupils and the school's contribution to promoting community cohesion and the well-being of all of their pupils.
	In the last three years Ofsted has conducted inspection work following allegations made in the press about extremism affecting the quality of education at the two schools belonging to the Islamic Shakhsiyah Foundation and at King Fahad School.

Secure Training Centres: Children

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  how many  (a) looked after,  (b) eligible,  (c) relevant and  (d) former relevant children are in secure training centres;
	(2)  how many  (a) looked after,  (b) eligible,  (c) relevant and  (d) former relevant children are in custody with (i) an indeterminate sentence for public protection, (ii) an extended sentence and (iii) life sentence;
	(3)  how many  (a) looked after,  (b) eligible,  (c) relevant and  (d) former relevant children are in secure children's homes;
	(4)  how many  (a) looked after,  (b) eligible, (c) relevant and (d) former relevant children were in custody in 2008 after the date of their 18th birthday;
	(5)  how many  (a) looked-after,  (b) eligible,  (c) relevant and  (d) former relevant children there are in young offender institutions.

Dawn Primarolo: An eligible child is a young person aged 16-18 who has been looked after for the prescribed period (13 weeks) and is then eligible for services under the Children (Leaving Care) Act and who remains looked after by the local authority. A relevant child is a young person aged 16-18 who has been looked after for the prescribed period (13 weeks) and is then eligible for services under the Children (Leaving Care) Act and who is no longer looked after by the local authority.
	A former relevant child is a young person aged 18+ (i.e. legally adult) who was either an eligible or a relevant child or both who as a result will remain entitled to continuing leaving care support from their responsible local authority until age 21 or longer if continuing in an agreed programme of education or training.
	Information on the number of children placed in secure units and in young offenders institutions or prisons who were  (a) looked after,  (b) eligible, can be found in the statistical first release titled Children looked after in England (including adoption and care leavers) year ending 31 March 2009.
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000878/index.shtml
	Table A3 shows the number of children looked after at 31 March 2005 to 2009, aged up to 17 years (inclusive), who were placed in secure units and in young offenders institutions or prisons. This table can be found in the excel link titled (England Summary tables, included within PDF file).
	Information on the number of  (c) relevant and  (d) former relevant children who are in secure training centres, secure children's homes, young offender institutions or in custody is not collected by the Department. Information on the numbers in custody with (i) an indeterminate sentence for public protection, (ii) an extended sentence and (iii) life sentence is also not collected by the Department.
	Information on the number of former care leavers who were in custody around the time of their 19th birthday, who had previously been looked after aged 16, can also be found in the statistical first release titled Children looked after in England (including adoption and care leavers) year ending 31 March 2009.
	http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000878/index.shtml
	Table G1 shows the number of former care leavers who were in custody around the time of their 19th birthday. This table can be found in the excel link titled (England Summary tables, included within PDF file).

Social Workers

Bob Spink: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many foster carers caring for children through special guardianship orders have reported to his Department allegations of  (a) intimidation and  (b) bullying by social workers in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Data on allegations made about social workers are not collected by the Department for Children, Schools and Families. I am not aware of any allegations about intimidation or bullying by social workers having been reported to the Department by a Special Guardian in the last 12 months.
	Social worker employers hold information on allegations made about social workers in their employment as it is their responsibility to investigate such allegations and take appropriate action.
	The General Social Care Council also investigates allegations about social workers in its capacity as the regulator of the social work profession in England. The General Social Care Council's report Raising standards: Social work conduct in England 2003-2008 which includes trend analyses of the cases referred to them in the period 2003-08 is available here:
	http://www.gscc.org.uk/Conduct/Publications +and+useful+documents/

Specialised Diplomas

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many maintained schools enrolled no pupils on a diploma course in the most recent year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement.

Iain Wright: It is estimated that 78 per cent. (2,342) of maintained mainstream schools did not register any diploma learners on the Diploma Aggregation Service (DAS) during 2008/09. Published data on 2008/09 Diploma participation are obtained from the QCDA's DAS, which is used to award diplomas. Schools do not have to register learners on DAS until just before they intend to claim an award. It is possible that there are a number of schools who were delivering diplomas in 2008/09 who did not register any learners on DAS during 2008/09. Similarly, there will be schools which, as members of a diploma consortium, are participating in the delivery of diplomas, but if they are not the 'Home Centre' they will not have learners registered on DAS. The 'Home Centre' is the lead educational institution in the diploma consortium which is responsible for registering the diploma learner on DAS.
	Information on the number of schools in 2009/10 currently delivering the diploma is not yet available.

Sports: Primary Education

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what estimate he has made of the number and percentage of children in maintained schools who participated in intra-school competitive sports in the latest period for which information is available.

Iain Wright: The annual PE and Sport survey collects data from maintained schools relating to pupils' participation in PE and sport. The 2008/09 survey found that 69 per cent. of pupils in Years 1-11 took part in intra-school competitive sport in that academic year.

Teachers: Qualifications

David Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent assessment he has made of the level of qualifications required for teachers at  (a) post-16 colleges and  (b) sixth forms attached to secondary schools; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: All teachers who joined the further education sector after September 2007 must, within five years of appointment, meet the standards for qualified teacher learning and skills (QTLS) status. Before they can teach unsupervised all new teachers must have attained the Preparing to Teach in the Lifelong Learning sector award. All teachers in the further education sector must undertake at least 30 hours of continuing professional development each year.
	Teachers who teach in a sixth form that is part of a school must meet the standards for qualified teacher status (QTS) before taking up their post. A school may temporarily employ a teacher without QTS if no suitable teacher with QTS is available.
	Apart from these statutory requirements, schools and colleges may make individual decisions about any other qualifications they require from their staff for a particular role. My Department does not collect data on individual schools' recruitment criteria, and nor does the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills with respect to colleges.

Written Questions: Government Responses

Ken Purchase: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families when he expects to answer Question 324573, on Ofsted, tabled on 23 March 2010.

Vernon Coaker: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given on 7 April 2010,  Official Report, column 1460W.

Young People: Drugs

David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families whether any of the adolescents identified by the National Treatment Agency as having a Class A drug dependency are using  (a) more than one Class A drug and  (b) one or more of (i) alcohol and (ii) cannabis.

Dawn Primarolo: The information is not available in the format requested. The NTA report, Substance misuse among young people: The data for 2008-09, gives figures on numbers of young people (under-18) in drug treatment according to whether each drug type is categorised as the primary or additional substance used as follows:
	
		
			  Drug type  Primary  Additional 
			 Heroin and other opiates 547 204 
			 Cocaine 745 2,305 
			 Crack 110 304 
			 Ecstasy 210 1,429 
			 Cannabis 12,642 4,811 
			 Amphetamines 229 887 
			 Alcohol 8,799 7,248

Youth Parliaments

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families 
	(1)  what steps his Department takes to ensure that its funding for county Youth Parliaments represents value for money; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  how much funding his Department has provided to the Surrey Youth Parliament in each of the last three years.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 7 April 2010
	The Department does not directly fund local Youth Parliaments.
	We are committed to putting youth voice at the heart of our policies and programmes for young people and it is right that they should have access to the appropriate forums to discuss matters that affect their lives. Giving young people a real say over the issues that affect them leads to better decisions and outcomes, promotes community engagement and helps overturn negative perceptions. Youth Parliaments are one of a number of ways that young people's voices can be heard by local and national decision makers. Many local authorities choose to support Youth Parliaments as part of their overall arrangements for taking account of young people's views.

COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Buildings: Energy

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 4 February 2010,  Official Report, column 524W, on buildings: energy, how many and what proportion of properties on the Non-Domestic EPC Register have a Band  (a) A,  (b) B,  (c) C,  (d) D,  (e) E and  (f) F rating.

Ian Austin: The number and proportion of properties on the Non-Domestic EPC Register by rating band as of 8 February is:
	
		
			  Rating band  Number of lodgements  Percentage of lodgements 
			 A+ 10 0.1 
			 A 557 0.38 
			 B 11,701 8.00 
			 C 40,392 27.61 
			 D 42,689 29.18 
			 E 25,524 17.45 
			 F 11,876 8.12 
			 G 13,551 9.26

Council Housing: Rents

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average rent paid for  (a) one bedroom,  (b) two bedroom,  (c) three bedroom and  (d) all types of council accommodation in (i) City of York, (ii) Yorkshire and the Humber and (iii) England in (A) 2002-03, (B) 2005-06 and (C) in the latest period figures are available.

Ian Austin: It has not proved possible to respond to my hon. Friend in the time available before Prorogation.

Empty Dwelling Management Orders

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many empty dwelling management orders have been issued by each local authority.

Ian Austin: 29 interim Empty Dwelling Management Orders have been authorised by the Residential Property Tribunal to date.
	
		
			  Local authority  Number of interim EDMOs authorised 
			 Bolton Borough Council 1 
			 Carlisle District Council 2 
			 London Borough of Bromley 1 
			 London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham 1 
			 London Borough of Hounslow 1 
			 London Borough of Lewisham 5 
			 New Forest District Council 1 
			 Norwich City Council 6 
			 Peterborough City Council 2 
			 South Gloucestershire Council 1 
			 South Norfolk District Council 1 
			 South Oxfordshire District Council 1 
			 South Tyneside Borough Council 1 
			 Southend-On-Sea Borough Council 2 
			 Staffordshire Moorlands District Council 1 
			 Swale Borough Council 1 
			 Wychavon District Council 1 
			 Total 29 
		
	
	Empty Dwelling Management Orders should only be considered as a last resort, where all other measures of investigation and negotiation have been exhausted and the local authority has been unable to persuade the owner to bring the property back into use. In many cases the threat of an Empty Dwelling Management Order is sufficient to make owners take action.

First-Time Buyers

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average cost was of a dwelling purchased by a first-time buyer in  (a) England,  (b) Wales,  (c) each Government office region and  (d) each local authority area in the most recent period for which figures are available.

Ian Austin: The latest average mix-adjusted purchase price of a first-time buyer, for January 2010 as well as previous months back to 2002, for England, Wales and Government Office regions are available on the Department's website.

First-Time Buyers

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many homes have been sold to first-time buyers under Government schemes in each year since 1997.

John Healey: Since 1997 over 160,000 households have been assisted into home ownership through Government schemes.
	A full breakdown of low cost home ownership provision can be found in Live Table 1000 of the communities and Local Government website at:
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/documents/housing/xls/1406058.xls

Housing

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government in what year his Department began keeping reliable figures relating to net housing supply; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Austin: holding answer 25 February 2010
	 Annual estimates of net supply have been made from annual changes in housing stock since the late 1960's. Prior to that estimates were available every 10 years from the population census, back to 1801. In 2000-01 a new data return was introduced to improve estimates of net supply.
	Figures on net supply of housing and an explanation of data sources are included in Communities and Local Government's statistical series Net supply of housing, England. Statistical releases in this series can be found on the Communities and Local Government website at the following link. The latest release was published on 25 February 2010.
	http://www.communities.gov.uk/housing/housingresearch/housingstatistics/housingstatisticsby/stockincludingvacants/nethousingsupply/

Housing: Overcrowding

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of  (a) households and  (b) people in the (i) private rented, (ii) social rented and (iii) owner occupier sector living in overcrowded conditions in each year since 1997.

Ian Austin: The information requested is available on the Department's website.

Housing: Prices

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the ratio of lower quintile house prices to lower quintile earnings was in  (a) England and  (b) each government office region in each year since 1996.

Ian Austin: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Housing: Prices

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average cost was of  (a) a detached house,  (b) a semi-detached house,  (c) a terraced house,  (d) a flat and  (e) an average dwelling in (i) England, (ii) Wales, (iii) each Government Office region and (iv) each local authority area in (A) 1996-97 and (B) the most recent period for which figures are available.

Ian Austin: A table showing the average sale price by property type for 1996-07 and 2009 for each of the areas requested has been placed in the Library of the House. These figures are taken from the Land Registry data.

Housing: Sales

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many residential property sales there were in each local authority area in the last year for which figures are available.

Ian Austin: Data on residential property sales are provided by the Land Registry and published by local authority district on the CLG website.

Housing: Sales

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many and what proportion of domestic properties sold in each  (a) local authority and  (b) Government office region were sold at above £325,000 in the latest period for which figures are available.

Ian Austin: The information requested is not available in the form requested.

Housing: Standards

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many Building for Life assessments were carried out in each of the last three years; and how many resulted in an assessment of  (a) very good,  (b) good,  (c) average and  (d) poor;
	(2)  how much the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment has received for training local planning authority assessors in the Building for Life programme.

Ian Austin: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Planning Inspectorate: Judicial Reviews

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many judicial reviews relating to section 288 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 were brought by each local planning authority against the decision of the Planning Inspectorate in each of the last five years; how many of those were  (a) upheld and  (b) dismissed in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Austin: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Rented Housing: Overcrowding

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many and what proportion of  (a) households and  (b) people in the (i) private and (ii) social rented sector there were living in overcrowded conditions in (A) London and (B) England in each year since 1997;
	(2)  how many and what proportion of  (a) households and  (b) people in the (i) private and (ii) social rented sector classified as living in overcrowded conditions there were in each London borough in each year from 1997 to 2009.

Ian Austin: Information in respect of overcrowding is available on the Department's website.
	The Survey of English Housing samples is too small to provide reliable estimates at local authority level.

Social Rented Housing

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what percentage of the social homes provided through the temporary social housing programme in each of the last three years were available for  (a) up to five years,  (b) from six to 10 years,  (c) from 11 to 15 years and  (d) from 16 years or more.

Ian Austin: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Social Rented Housing

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 4 March 2010,  Official Report, columns 1330-1332W, on social rented housing: finance, what the average duration of availability was for social homes provided through the Temporary Social Housing programme in each of the last three years.

Ian Austin: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Social Rented Housing: Construction

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many social homes have been built since April 2006; and  (a) how many and  (b) what proportion met code level (i) 1, (ii) 2, (iii) 3, (iv) 4, (v) 5 and (vi) 6 of the Code for Sustainable Homes.

Ian Austin: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 23 March 2010,  Official Report, columns 271-72W, to the hon. Member for Welwyn Hatfield (Grant Shapps).

Social Rented Housing: Empty Property

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many social homes were vacant for a period of more than six months in each local authority area in each of the last three years;
	(2)  how many social homes were vacant in each local authority area in each of the last three years.

Ian Austin: Information is not available on the number of registered social landlord dwellings that were vacant for a period of more than six months in each local authority area.
	The other information requested is available on the Department's website.

Social Rented Housing: Waiting Lists

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government 
	(1)  how many households with children were on the social housing waiting list in each of the last three years; and how many children there were in households on that waiting list in each of those years;
	(2)  how many households with at least one pregnant member were on the social housing waiting list in each of the last three years;
	(3)  what information his Department  (a) holds and  (b) collects from local authorities on (i) demographics and (ii) waiting times in respect of households on the social housing waiting list;
	(4)  how many households with at least one disabled person were on the social housing waiting list in each of the last three years.

Ian Austin: Information on waiting times and other characteristics of households on social housing waiting lists are not collected centrally.
	The other information requested is available on the Department's website.

Street Cleaning

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if he will bring forward legislative proposals to require local authorities to clean and maintain unadopted alleyways; and if he will make a statement.

Barbara Follett: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

TREASURY

Banks: USA

David Drew: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what representations he has made to the US authorities on the effect on UK banks in which the Government have a stake operating in the US of the new taxation arrangements in that country; and whether he plans to make such arrangements reciprocal.

Stephen Timms: On 14 January the US announced the Financial Crisis Responsibility Fee, which the Government are studying closely. This is a matter for the US authorities and UK banks will be working with them to understand the impact of the proposal as it passes through Congress.

Revenue and Customs: Closures

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether an assessment has been made of the implications for levels of tax collected of proposals by HM Revenue and Customs to close offices and reduce staff.

Stephen Timms: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is restructuring its operations across the UK, by consolidating its staff into larger teams in fewer locations to enable more efficient working practices to be introduced.
	During this restructuring HMRC has increased the revenues bought in from its compliance activities, from £7.5 billion in 2005-06 to £12 billion in 2008-09.

Revenue and Customs: Peterhead

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment has been made of the effects of the closure of HM Revenue and Customs' (HMRC) office in Peterhead on the provision of face-to-face advice for clients; how far the nearest HMRC enquiry centre providing face-to-face advice for clients will be from Peterhead following the closure of Keith House, Peterhead; what the estimated disposal costs are of Keith House; what support and guidance HMRC have offered to staff at Keith House over the Workforce Change Programme; whether HMRC plans any compulsory redundancies in respect of staff at Keith House; and how many staff at Keith House will be redeployed by HMRC to other locations.

Stephen Timms: Provision of face to face advice services currently provided by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) at Keith House, Peterhead will continue either in the existing location or nearby, although no final decision has yet been made as to the actual location. These services are not affected by the decision to withdraw other HMRC work from Peterhead.
	HMRC occupies Keith House under contract with its estates provider, Mapeley, and this contract includes a high level of flexibility for HMRC to vacate properties at nil or limited cost during the life of the contract. HMRC intends to maximise the use of the contract's flexibility and until vacation plans for Keith House are finalised, it is not known whether disposal costs will be applicable.
	Following the announcement on 4 December 2008 that HMRC would withdraw from Keith House, managers have held one-to-one meetings with staff to discuss their options, taking account of individual personal circumstances. A regional implementation team was set up to explore redeployment options and find suitable opportunities within HMRC and in other Government Departments and agencies. Seminars for all affected staff are being held, and further support is being planned for those staff who want to continue their civil service careers.
	Of the eight staff working in Keith House, plans are currently in place for one to be redeployed or continue to provide enquiry centre services. Those staff who cannot be redeployed are eligible to be considered for voluntary redundancy on compulsory terms. HMRC is committed to avoiding compulsory redundancies wherever possible.

Revenue and Customs: Scotland

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer at how many locations in Scotland HM Revenue and Customs shares office accommodation with other government agencies.

Stephen Timms: 24.

Revenue and Customs: Scotland

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether any of the HM Revenue and Customs offices in Scotland earmarked for closure were funded through the private finance initiative.

Stephen Timms: All of the HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) offices in Scotland identified for closure are held under private finance initiative (PFI) arrangements. The majority are held directly by HMRC under the Strategic Transfer of the Estate to the Private Sector (STEPS) contract with Mapeley, which provides a high level of flexibility for HMRC to vacate properties at nil or limited cost during the life of the contract.
	The remaining offices being occupied by HMRC under sharing arrangements with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and subject to DWP's PFI contract with Trillium.

Revenue and Customs: Scotland

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many cases have been passed from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) call centres to HMRC offices in Scotland which have been earmarked for closure in each of the last five years; what the estimated cost will be of vacating those offices; and what plans HMRC has for the disposal of such buildings at each location.

Stephen Timms: The information requested around the number of cases passed from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) Call Centres to those offices in Scotland is available only at disproportionate cost, due to the work required to extract it from HMRC's systems.
	The majority of the HMRC offices in Scotland are held under the terms of the HMRC private finance initiative (PF1) contract with their estates supplier, Mapeley. This contract includes a high level of flexibility for HMRC to vacate properties at nil or limited cost during the life of the contract. HMRC intends to maximise the use of the contract's flexibility and until vacation plans for each office are finalised, it is not known whether disposal costs will be applicable. Formal vacation notices for each office are due to be issued by summer 2010.

Revenue and Customs: Scotland

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the staff  (a) turnover and  (b) absentee rate was at each HM Revenue and Customs office in Scotland in each of the last five years.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is provided in the following tables.
	
		
			  Percentage 
			Turnover 
			  Town  Office name  2009-10( 1)  2008-09  2007-08  2006-07  2005-06 
			 Aberdeen Ruby House 3.2 22.3 14.3 9.4 9.1 
			 Ayr Russell House 20.2 26.8 13.6 8.5 12.2 
			 Bathgate Pyramids Business Park 7.7 18.7 20.3 14.2 13.2 
			 Buckie Moray House 0.0 8.0 8.3 6.7 5.9 
			 Coatbridge 2 Muiryhall Street 0.0 13.6 4.3 3.8 6.3 
			 Cumbernauld St. Mungos Road 2.5 6.8 10.5 19.2 9.1 
			 Dumbarton 15 Meadowbank Street 0.0 33.3 0.0 6.3 12.5 
			 Dumfries Government Buildings 48.1 14.3 23.4 10.6 1.8 
			
			 Dundee Caledonian House 3.3 11.6 63.8 7.7 9.3 
			  Sidlaw House 10.0 17.7 0.1 14.4 17.0 
			
			 Dunfermline Merchiston House 13.6 23.1 3.2 8.8 5.5 
			 Dunoon Auchencraig 21.1 16.7 0.0 0.0 16.0 
			
			 East Kilbride Hawbank Stores 0.0 0.0 n/a n/a n/a 
			  Plaza Tower 3.4 8.2 11.5 10.7 6.0 
			  Queensway House 4.3 13.6 14.3 7.4 6.5 
			
			 Edinburgh 44 York Place 5.7 8.3 7.0 3.7 13.2 
			  Argyle House 13.8 8.2 20.0 18.2 8.8 
			  Clarendon House 7.8 3.2 6.6 7.6 6.8 
			  Elgin House 2.7 4.3 9.4 11.0 6.9 
			  Erskine House 0.0 n/a n/a n/a n/a 
			  Grayfieid House 7.3 20.7 16.4 10.6 9.7 
			  Meldrum House 1.7 2.7 5.1 7.9 8.5 
			  Saughton House 5.0 5.4 7.3 7.7 5.4 
			
			 Elgin Phoenix House Elgin 0.0 80 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Falkirk Grahame House 26.4 45.5 22.2 10.0 10.7 
			 Galashiels New Reiver House 23.3 17.6 23.5 8.7 0.0 
			
			 Glasgow Blythswood House 4.2 7.7 3.9 6.6 7.6 
			  Cotton House 2.1 3.5 4.9 10.3 7.0 
			  Portcullis House 7.8 16.4 17.7 6.4 15.0 
			
			 Glenrothes Saltire House 3.8 9.2 14.9 5.0 6.1 
			 Grangemouth Custom House Grangemouth 10.6 0.0 10.5 15.2 11.1 
			
			 Greenock 99 Dalrymple Street 20.4 4.9 50.0 13.7 11.9 
			  Custom House 42.1 5.5 8.1 9.0 8.2 
			
			 Hamilton 1 Barrack Street 6.6 14.0 2.7 7.0 4.2 
			 Hawick Crown Building Hawick 14.4 12.5 18.2 17.4 7.7 
			
			 Inverness Longman House 28.8 21.1 9.5 0.0 27.3 
			  River House 2.9 11.4 7.0 8.6 1.9 
			
			 Irvine Marress House 5.6 16.9 3.1 2.9 7.4 
			 Kirkcaldy 26 Victoria Road 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Lerwick Charlotte House 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			
			 Livingston Almondvale Shopping Centre 19.8 0.0 n/a n/a n/a 
			  Barbara Ritchie House 6.8 19.4 21.5 11.0 22.4 
			  Pentland House 3.5 3.9 5.4 4.6 6.7 
			
			 Motherwell 43 Civic Square 0.0 16.2 19.2 6.5 0.0 
			 Oban Mathieson House 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 50.0 
			
			 Paisley Falcon Osprey and Vigilant House 0.9 3.6 2.6 3.1 12.0 
			  Gilmour House 10.9 3.8 0.0 3.3 6.1 
			  Glasgow Airport 35.2 13.3 0.0 0.0 26.7 
			
			 Perth 1 to 3 Water Vennel 23.3 13.3 11.5 74.1 16.7 
			 Peterhead Keith House 17.6 28.6 10.5 3.6 6.6 
			 Rothesay 9 King Street 0.0 0.0 0.0 21.1 0.0 
			 Stirling 8 Spittal Street 19.8 5.6 26.9 6.4 7.8 
			 Ullapool 24 West Argyll Street 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 
			 Wick Government Buildings and Custom House 10.8 4.3 4.3 4.1 3.6 
			 (1) 1 April 2009 to 15 January 2010. 
		
	
	
		
			Average working days lost (AWDL) based on 12 months of sick absence data and three months of staff in post data (April, October and March) (see following notes)  Projected 12 months AWDL using eight months sickness absence and three months staff in post data 
			  Town  Office name  2007-08  2008-09  2009-10( 1) 
			 Aberdeen Ruby House 4.26 7.23 6.61 
			 Ayr Russell House 3.71 6.58 2.95 
			 Bathgate Pyramids Business Park 13.85 9.28 4.46 
			 Buckie Moray House 5.23 4.46 3.23 
			 Coatbridge 2 Muiryhall Street 7.47 7.19 28.31 
			 Cumbernauld St. Mungos Road 11.45 12.15 14.32 
			 Dumbarton 15 Meadowbank Street 5.19 8.71 4.47 
			 Dumfries Government Buildings 5.57 2.53 3.69 
			  
			 Dundee Caledonian House Dundee 10.39 5.09 8.64 
			  Sidlaw House 21.94 24.51 19.19 
			  
			 Dunfermline Merchiston House 12.74 12.85 8.38 
			 Dunoon Auchencraig 5.76 1.52 0.13 
			  
			 East Kilbride Hawbank Stores n/a 0.86 0.00 
			  Plaza Tower 12.35 13.41 12.37 
			  Queensway House 12.27 10.98 10.58 
			  
			 Edinburgh 44 York Place 6.14 7.08 9.03 
			  Clarendon House Edinburgh 4.97 7.99 3.27 
			  Elgin House 7.86 8.62 6.75 
			  Erskine House n/a n/a 0.00 
			  Grayfield House 11.93 9.16 9.96 
			  Meldrum House 6.78 7.17 6.88 
			  Saughton House 9.85 10.43 11.58 
			  
			 Elgin Phoenix House Elgin 0.60 1.20 0.00 
			 Falkirk Grahame House 3.69 2.67 15.59 
			 Galashiels New Reiver House 1.11 4.98 3.69 
			  
			 Glasgow Blythswood House 15.50 10.06 15.96 
			  Cotton House 11.26 10.96 9.13 
			  Portcullis House Glasgow 3.34 14.39 13.42 
			  Terminal Building Glasgow Airport 0.00 0.09 0.00 
			  
			 Glenrothes Saltire House 12.79 14.71 8.64 
			 Grangemouth Custom House Grangemouth 0.42 4.01 2.68 
			 Greenock 99 Dalrymple Street 11.81 5.59 6.63 
			  Custom House Greenock 0.88 2.38 2.73 
			  
			 Hamilton 1 Barrack Street 15.04 16.89 17.12 
			 Hawick Crown Building Hawick 13.52 0.40 0.52 
			  
			 Inverness Longman House 0.70 0.31 1.21 
			  River House 6.82 8.75 4.42 
			  
			 Irvine Marress House 4.60 5.91 3.02 
			 Kirkcaldy 26 Victoria Road 4.11 7.53 12.48 
			 Lerwick Charlotte House 2.10 9.29 0.00 
			  
			 Livingston Almondvale Shopping Centre n/a 7.50 19.29 
			  Barbara Ritchie House 8.04 16.12 14.65 
			  Pentland House 16.56 13.49 11.00 
			  
			 Motherwell 43 Civic Square 7.31 6.06 10.22 
			 Oban Mathieson House 0.00 0.00 0.00 
			  
			 Paisley Falcon Osprey and Vigilant House 5.52 7.46 8.88 
			  Gilmour House 6.06 14.99 14.77 
			  
			 Perth 1 to 3 Water Vennel 4.19 12.77 4.21 
			 Peterhead Keith House 2.80 5 22 15.51 
			 Rothesay 9 King Street 1.33 1.80 0.34 
			 Stirling 8 Spittal Street 21.58 16.86 13.76 
			 Ullapool 24 West Argyll Street 0.00 0.00 0.00 
			 Wick Government Buildings And Custom House 18.41 3.93 2.22 
			 (1) 1 April 2009 to 30 November 2009.  Notes: 1. Average working days lost are calculated as follows: 2007-08-Sick absence for each office, for April 2007 to March 2008. Divided by 12 month average staff in post (SiP) per office, using April 2007, October 2007 and March 2008 SiP. Result then multiplied by 12. 2008-09-Sick absence for each office, for April 2008 to March 2009. Divided by 12 month average staff in post per office, using April 2008, October 2008 and March 2009 SiP. Result then multiplied by 12. 2009-10-Sick absence for each office for April 2009 to November 2009. (November 2009 is the latest SA data held). Divided by eight month average staff in post per office, using April, October and November 2009 SiP. Result then multiplied by 12. 2. SiP data: This is based on three months staff in post data across each tax year which provides a realistic average per office. 
		
	
	HM Revenue and Customs is unable to provide the same data for 2005-06 and 2006-07 because data for staff on no pay as a result of sickness absence were not linked to office locations.
	 Answers received for publication 8 April 2010

Aggregates Levy: Wind Power

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether the aggregates levy applies to the construction of outside tracking and hard standings in wind farms when using materials excavated from  (a) a borrow pit and  (b) the foundations for turbine towers.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The aggregates levy is a tax on the commercial exploitation of primary aggregates (sand, rock, gravel) in the UK. There is no specific relief for aggregates used in the construction of wind farms.

Bank Services: York

Hugh Bayley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will direct UK Financial Investments to request from  (a) Northern Rock,  (b) Halifax,  (c) Bank of Scotland,  (d) Lloyds Bank and  (e) Royal Bank of Scotland (i) the number of (A) businesses and (B) retail account holders of each who were resident in York in 2009 and (ii) an estimate of the monetary value of the holdings in each bank by residents of York at 31 December 2009.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: UK Financial Investments manages the Government's holdings in financial institutions at arm's length and on a commercial basis. In line with its role as a shareholder, UKFI requests only information necessary to achieve its objective as set in its Framework Document and Investment Mandate. The Government believe that these arrangements are vital to ensure that the taxpayer receives value for money from the investments.

Banks: Finance

Angus MacNeil: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to Box C4, page 213 of the Budget 2010, what estimate he has made of the net fiscal cost of the Government's financial sector interventions as at 24 March 2010; and when he expects to publish the detailed calculations.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: Budget 2010 set out that:
	At current market prices the cost of the financial sector interventions net of fees and other income would total £6 billion
	(Financial Statement and Budget Report 2010, p213). Details of the derivation of this figure are given in the text on pages 213 and 214.

Child Care Vouchers

Sally Keeble: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many parents who use childcare vouchers also claimed the childcare element of working tax credit in the last 12 months.

Stephen Timms: Robust data are not available, but analysis of survey data suggests that only a small proportion of parents using child care vouchers also claim the child care element of the working tax credit.

Civil Servants: Location

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer to the right hon. Member for Horsham of 12 March 2010,  Official Report, column 516W, on civil servants: location, what targets were set for  (a) the Cabinet Office,  (b) the Department for Transport,  (c) the Foreign and Commonwealth Office,  (d) HM Revenue and Customs and  (e) the UK Statistics Authority in respect of (i) percentage relocation and (ii) 2003 baseline staffing figures; and what the performance of each against these targets has been to date.

Liam Byrne: Relocation targets were set for the Lyons Programme as an absolute number of civil service posts, not as percentages of staff based in London and the south-east, or as a percentage figure of the total work force.
	The following table records: the 2003 national staffing figure as recorded in the annual report on civil service staffing figures produced by the Cabinet Office; the London and the south-east staffing figure; the numerical target for posts to relocate; and progress towards that target as of 30 June 2009, for  (a) the Cabinet Office,  (b) the Department for Transport,  (c) the Foreign and Commonwealth Office,  (d) HM Revenue and Customs and  (e) the UK National Statistics (then known as the Office for National Statistics).
	
		
			   2003 national staff figure  2003 London/SE staff figure  Numerical target for posts to relocate  Performance against target as of 30 June 2009 
			 CO 2,540 2,360 250 67 
			 DFT 14,540 3,510 60 38 
			 FCO 5,890 4,640 450 30 
			 HMRC 97,740 23,830 4,250 3,238 
			 UKNS 3,250 1,520 850 523 
		
	
	The Budget statement on 24 March 2010 reported that by December 2009 over 21,500 civil service posts had been relocated against the target of 24,000. More detail on this progress is available on the OGC website:
	www.ogc.gov.uk

Departmental Public Expenditure

Philip Hammond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department has incurred expenditure on  (a) foreign exchange derivatives and  (b) consulting on currency hedging strategies in each of the last five years.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: holding answer 30 March 2010
	Under the Credit Guarantee Scheme, HM Treasury uses foreign exchange derivatives to hedge fee income received for debt issued in foreign currencies. HM Treasury does not incur explicit expenditure on these transactions; any fees charged for the use of these derivatives would be reflected in the level of the foreign exchange gain received. HM Treasury reports on the Credit Guarantee Scheme, and its financial impacts, annually in its Resource Accounts.
	HM Treasury has not incurred any expenditure on consulting on currency hedging strategies.

Green Investment Bank

Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether community-based social enterprises will be eligible for investment from the Green Investment Bank announced in Budget 2010.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: The Green Investment Bank (GIB) will specifically address the risk of an emerging gap in the provision of equity capital to large, complex infrastructure projects within the next few years. It is likely the initial focus of the GIB will be on offshore wind generation. However, it will also consider the case for investing in other infrastructure as appropriate as investment needs arise. Infrastructure UK will be consulting on the establishment of the GIB in the summer.

Income Tax: Young People

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  how many 16 and 17 year-olds resident in Scotland pay income tax;
	(2)  how much income tax liability there was in respect of those resident in Scotland under the age of 18 years between 6 April 2008 and 5 April 2009.

Stephen Timms: In 2008-09, the number of 16 and 17-year-olds in Scotland with income tax liabilities is estimated at around 6,000, with total income tax liabilities for those under 18 years estimated at £3.7 million.
	The figures are based on the 2006-07 Survey of Personal Incomes and projected in line with 2009 pre-Budget report assumptions. The figures should be treated with caution given the small sample size.

Members: Correspondence

Alex Salmond: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects to reply to the letter dated 3 March 2010 from the right hon. Member for Banff and Buchan regarding his constituent Mr. L. Stridgen.

Sarah McCarthy-Fry: A reply has been sent to the hon. Member.

National Insurance Contributions

Lembit �pik: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether his Department has made an assessment of the merits of  (a) reducing National Insurance contributions for businesses taking on a graduate employee and  (b) providing a National Insurance contribution rebate to businesses with fewer than 50 members of staff in 2010-11; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Timms: All tax and national insurance policy is kept under constant review. Previous experience of schemes with special arrangements for national insurance contributions for specific groups suggests administrative costs could limit take up.
	Budget 2010 announced that the Government will extend the £1.3 billion Young Person's Guarantee after March 2011 to ensure young people adversely affected by the recession continue to be offered a Future Jobs Fund job, training or work experience if they cannot find employment within six months.

Non-domestic Rates: Garages and Petrol Stations

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Mole Valley of 5 February 2010,  Official Report, columns 643-45W, on non-domestic rates: garages and petrol stations, how many of the hereditaments in each category are in each billing authority area.

Ian Pearson: It has not proved possible to answer the hon. Member's question before Parliament is prorogued later today.

Non-domestic Rates: Ports

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of a moratorium on payments of retrospective rates on port businesses.

Barbara Follett: I have been asked to reply.
	It has not proved possible to respond to my hon. Friend in the time available before Prorogation.

Non-domestic Rates: Ports

Austin Mitchell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many companies have registered for his Department's scheme to enable retrospective business rate charges to be paid over eight years; and how many such companies are  (a) newly-rated port companies and  (b) located outside ports.

Barbara Follett: I have been asked to reply.
	It has not proved possible to respond to my hon. Friend in the time available before Prorogation.

Non-domestic Rates: Post Offices

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many post office branches were on the rating list in  (a) 1997 and  (b) 2010, according to Special Category code information held by the Valuation Office Agency.

Ian Pearson: It has not proved possible to answer the hon. Member's question before Parliament is prorogued later today.

Revenue and Customs

Iain Duncan Smith: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will publish the remissions and write-offs included in the HM Revenue and Customs Trust Statement (a) 2007-08 and  (b) 2008-09 including (i) the amounts not collected and (ii) the reasons for the remissions and write-offs.

Stephen Timms: The information is as follows:
	(i) Table 8.2 on page 100 of HM Revenue and Customs' (HMRC) 2008-09 Annual Accounts sets out the amounts of revenue that HMRC remitted and wrote off in 2007-08 and 2008-09. HMRC's Annual Accounts are available at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/about/hmrc-accs-0809.pdf
	(ii) Tax debts are remitted where they are capable of being recovered but HMRC decides not to pursue a liability. It does this: when the value of a debt is small compared with the likely cost of recovering it; when enforcing payment would cause an individual, or his or her dependents, to suffer financial hardship; or where an earlier error by HMRC would make it inappropriate or unfair for it to enforce payment.
	HMRC writes off debts when they have become irrecoverable because there are no practical means for pursuing the debt. This applies where taxpayers have gone missing and HMRC has not been able to trace their current whereabouts or where they have moved overseas to a territory outside the European Union with which the UK has no reciprocal recovery rights.
	Debts are also written off where individuals or companies have become insolvent. When this happens, HMRC aims to recover a proportion of what it is owed consistent with its legal rights as a creditor, and it writes off the tax that cannot be recovered in this way. Around 90 per cent. of all HMRC remissions and write offs come from this last category.

Tax Allowances: Housing

Kitty Ussher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 18 March 2010,  Official Report, column 195W, on tax allowances: housing, if he will estimate the number of  (a) UK taxpayers and  (b) hon. Members who varied the nomination of a main residence in order to obtain private residence relief from capital gains tax in each of the last 10 years.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is available only at disproportionate cost, as the data on main residence nominations are not centrally held on HMRC's systems.

Tax Allowances: Pensioners

Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many claims for higher rate tax relief on pensions were rejected by HM Revenue and Customs in financial year 2009-10 on the basis that the period within which claims were required to be submitted had expired.

Stephen Timms: The information requested is not available.

Taxation

John Leech: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the effect on domestic tax revenue rates of relocating offshore  (a) public and  (b) private sector jobs.

Stephen Timms: No such estimate has been made.

Taxation: Domicil

Michael Meacher: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will bring forward in the Budget proposals to end non-domiciliary tax status.

Stephen Timms: holding answer 9 March 2010
	The rules governing the way in which non-domiciled individuals are taxed in the UK were reformed in 2008. These reforms struck the right balance between increasing fairness and maintaining the UK's international competitiveness.

Valuation Office Agency: Allowances

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst of 12 November 2009,  Official Report, column 810W, on Valuation Office: allowances, how many individual expenses were claimed by the Valuation Office Agency's Director of National and Central Services in 2008-09.

Ian Pearson: During 2008-09 the Valuation Office Agency's (VOA) Director of National and Central Services claimed 475 individual expenses.
	The expenses claimed and paid directly to the individual for 2008-09 totalled £6,632.
	All expenses have been counted individually and not totalled for each day of travel or for each, total, claim submitted on the VOA expenses system. For example if a tube, bus and meal allowance has been claimed on the same day this will be counted as three separate expense claims not one.
	This sum excludes costs paid direct by the agency's travel providers for hotel accommodation, rail fares etc.
	A further detailed analysis of the hotel expense statistics (as supplied by the travel provider) has revealed errors in the way in which the information from the travel supplier was interpreted. This position has now been clarified but, as a consequence, the figures shown on 12 November 2009,  Official Report, column 810W, should show the revisions shown in brackets.
	
		
			  Expenses claimed 
			  £ 
			   1 April 2007 to  31 March 2008  1 April 2008 to  31 March 2009 
			 Director of National and Central Services 0 34,039 (23,732)

Valuation Office Agency: Allowances

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer with reference to the answer to the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst of 12 November 2009,  Official Report, column 810W, on the Valuation Office: allowances, what individual expenses were paid to the Valuation Office Agency's  (a) Chief Executive from April 2007 to March 2009,  (b) Director of Data Strategy from April 2007 to March 2009 and  (c) Deputy Chief Executive from April 2007 to March 2009.

Ian Pearson: The individual expenses paid to the chief executive, deputy chief executive and the director of data strategy of the Valuation Office Agency from April 2007 to March 2009 are shown in the following table:
	
		
			  £ 
			   2007-08  2008-09 
			 Chief executive 235.70 237.60 
			 Deputy chief executive 535.46 376.69 
			 Director of data strategy 945.45 1,369.91 
		
	
	A further detailed analysis of the hotel expense statistics (as supplied by the travel provider) has revealed errors in the way in which the information from the travel supplier was interpreted. This position has now been clarified but., as a consequence, the figures shown on 12 November 2009,  Official Report, column 810W, should show the revisions shown in brackets.
	
		
			  £ 
			  Expenses claimed  1 April 2007 to  31 March 2008  1 April 2008 to  31 March 2009 
			 Chief executive 4,934 (4,792) 3,194 (3,216) 
			 Deputy chief executive 4,283 (3,083) 2,018 (2,843) 
			 Director of data strategy 3,757 (2,649) 4,132 (1,956)

CULTURE MEDIA AND SPORT

Croydon

Andrew Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will set out with statistical evidence relating as closely as possible to the Croydon Central constituency, the effects of his Department's policies on the constituency since 2005.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 7 April 2010
	My Department's aim is to improve the quality of life for everyone through cultural and sporting activities, to support the pursuit of excellence and to champion the tourism, creative and leisure industries.
	The impact of bodies and policies of my Department on the Croydon, Central constituency since 2005 include:
	£4,955 given from Arts Council England to organisations based in Croydon in 2008-09 through the Grants for the Arts programme.
	£58,000 of English Heritage grant offers to the Croydon, Central constituency in 2008-09.
	Digital switchover is due to take place in Croydon, Central in 2012. By the time switchover is complete at the end of 2012, 98.5 per cent. of households nationwide will be able to receive digital TV-the same number that can currently receive analogue.
	Over £5,117,088 of national lottery grants made to applications from the Croydon, Central constituency since 2005.
	The Croydon, Central constituency has also benefited from other policies and spending whose impact cannot be broken down by constituency. This includes:
	£4 billion of Exchequer funding spent on culture.
	More than £5.5 billion invested in sport by the Government and the national lottery since 1997.
	Almost 750,000 free swims taken in London in the first eight months of the Free Swimming programme.
	A 68 per cent. increase in national museum visits from 1998-99 to 2008-09-10 per cent. of which were by adults from lower socioeconomic groups.
	£416.6 million in grants allocated by English Heritage since 1997.
	48 per cent. of buildings on the original 1999 Buildings at Risk Register having their future secured.
	90 per cent. of all pupils taking part in at least two hours of high quality PE or sport per week in 2008 from an estimated 25 per cent. in 2003-04-exceeding our target.

Departmental Electricity Supply

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what  (a) voltage optimisers and  (b) equivalent technologies are used within buildings occupied by his Department.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Department has two 830kVA powerPerfector units.

Football: Finance

Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what funding his Department has allocated to support youth development and training at non-league football clubs in the last 12 months.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 30 March 2010
	In the last financial year Sport England has provided funding of £7,851,278 to the Football Association (FA) to increase participation, rates of retention and strengthen talent pathways for women and girls and disability players.
	In addition, approximately £6 million was committed through the Physical Education Sport Strategy for Young People Programme; community club facilities; clubs development, coach development; FA skills and 16-18 retention programmes.
	Sport England also allocates £15 million Exchequer funding a year to the Football Foundation. Part of this funding will support the youth development in community football clubs.

Government Art Collection

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many pieces from the Government Art Collection have been reported missing in each year since 1997; and what the monetary value of each such piece was.

Ben Bradshaw: holding answer 23 March 2010
	There are more than 13,500 works of art in the Government Art Collection's (GAC) holdings, on display in over 400 different buildings in the UK and around the world. The GAC carries out audits remotely and in person and some works are occasionally reported as missing from their previously reported locations. The GAC make extensive searches, after which time, many of the items are accounted for.
	This table details those Government Art Collection prints and paintings which have been reported as missing since 1997 and not yet recovered:
	
		
			  Year went missing  Work/artist  Value (£) 
			 1997 Sacred Place 20/50 by M. Ayrton 50 
			 1997 NW Prospect of Gloucester by S.  N. Buck 500 
			 1997 E Prospect of Burton on Trent 500 
			 1997 Sheep at Dusk near New Tredegar by C. Molyneux 25 
			 1998 Charles Abbott 1st Baron Tenterdon by W. Owen 250 
			 1998 Alex Wedderburn 1st Earl Rosslyn by J. Reynolds 50 
			 1999 The Tate Gallery by J. Griffiths 50 
			 2000 Poppies with Sunflowers by M. Thompson 50 
			 2000 How to make 16 Squares out of Forty Rods by M. Porter 50 
			 2000 Jesus College, Cambridge by J. Trevelyan 50 
			 2000 The Deer House, Bishop Auckland, County Durham by J. Thirsk 30 
			 2000 View of Walton Bridge from Oatlands by Farington 75 
			 2000 Fawley Court and Henley by Farington 75 
			 2000 NW Prospect of City of Bristol by S. and N. Buck 500 
			 2000 Jesus College, Cambridge by J. Trevelyan 50 
			 2001 Exhibition Room, Somerset House by Rowlandson 100 
			 2001 The Mosque of Sultan Achmet by anonymous 100 
			 2001 Syon House by A. Bury 50 
			 2001 On London Bridge by Edwin La Dell 50 
			 2001 Offering to Jupiter by M. Rocca 80,000 
			 2001 Lake Landscape by G. Arnald 35,000 
			 2001 Landscape by E. Williams 60,000 
			 2001 St. James's Park and Banqueting House by A. Highmore 60,000 
			 2001 Sir Woodbine's Parish by T. Phillips 5,000 
			 2001 The Cathedral of St. Magnus, Kirkwall, Orkney by W. Daniell 20 
			 2002 Boys and Girls in Boats, Windsor by L. Rosoman 30 
			 2002 Walter Runciman, 1st Viscount Runciman by W. Strang 100 
			 2002 Regent Street looking towards the Quadrant by T. S. Boys 100 
			 2002 Westminster Abbey, West Front by T. H. Shepherd 30 
			 2002 Richmond Castle, Evening by D. Muirhead 30 
			 2002 St. Paul's 15/75 by J. Trevelyan 100 
			 2002 Shadwell Park 4/75 by J. Piper 300 
			 2003 The Rose Garden, British Embassy, Washington by E. Croner 100 
			 2003 The New Law Courts, Main portion of Strand Facade by G. E. Street 50 
			 2003 The New Law Courts, Portion of the West Front by G. E. Street 50 
			 2003 Stepping Stones by T. Gilman 2,200 
			 2003 Paradox No. IV 15/25 by D. Hirst 25 
			 2004 Blackfriars from Southwark Bridge by T. Shotters Boys 100 
			 2005 Gondola III 39/100 by M. Krosh-Frishman 50 
			 2005 3ra Day of Creation A/P by E. Sharf 50 
			 2005 Hall of Christ Church Hospital by T. Rowlandson and A. C. Pugin 75 
			 2006 Penman-Mauer taken from near Aber, North Wales by W. Daniell 20 
			 2007 The New Foreign and India Offices: The Park Front by M. Jackson 50 
			 2007 The Grand Staircase at the New Foreign Office by anonymous 50 
			 2007 Boats A/P by R. Jarvis 100 
			 2007 Horse Guards from the Old Entrance, Scotland Yard by M. A. Rooker 500 
			 2008 Monument to Balance 4,30 by Ernest A. Dunn 100 
			 2008 The Wording of Police Charges 37/150 by R. B. Kitaj 500 
			 2008 Plague 37/150 by R. B. Kitaj 500 
			 2009 The Cathedral Church of St. Peter in Chichester by L. Knyff 250 
			 2009 Bambridge on Trial for Murder by Committee of House of Commons by W. Hogarth 200 
			 2009 The Railway Station by W. P. Frith 600 
			 2009 Derby Day by W. P. Frith 600 
			 2009 Leaving by D. Evans 500 
			 2009 House Plant 2/25 by Boyd and Evans 500 
			 2009 Evening Menu 31/70 by P. Caulfield 1,600 
			 2009 Untitled by P. Collingwood 3,000 
		
	
	This table details Government Art Collection prints and paintings which were reported missing but subsequently recovered:
	
		
			  Year went missing  Work/artist  Value £ 
			 2001 Dung Gate, Jerusalem by H. G. Gray 1,000 
			 2001 Jaffa Gate, Jerusalem by H. G. Gray 1,000 
			 2001 Zion Gate, Jerusalem by H. G. Gray 1,000 
			 2001 St. Stephen's Gate, Jerusalem by H. G. Gray 1,000 
			 2001 Damascus Gate, Jerusalem by H. G. Gray 1,000 
			 2001 Herod's Gate, Jerusalem by H. G. Gray 1,000 
			 2001 Golden Gate, Jerusalem by H. G. Gray 1,000 
			 2001 The Citadel, Jerusalem by H. G. Gray 1,000 
			 2003 The Mansion House looking towards Cheapside by T. Malton 50 
			 2003 Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux (1778-1868) Lord Chancellor by R. Bowyer 50 
			 2003 A Perspective View of Lincoln's Inn by J. Maurer 75 
			 2004 Forced Labour 34/250 by A. Hrdlicka 500 
			 2004 Cartmel Fell, Windermere 45/100 by N. Ackroyd 500 
			 2004 Les Premiers Astres 21/50 by J. Dickson 50 
			 2005 Calcutta by H. Salt 1,000 
			 2005 Lower Wessex Lane, Summer 9/10 by Stevens 50 
			 2005 Lower Wessex Lane, Spring 28/75 by Stevens 50 
			 2005 Stand On The Green by R. Burn 50 
			 2005 Key Print to Field Marshal, the Duke of Wellington giving orders to his Generals previous to a General Action 50 
			 2006 Abstract by S. Kaner 100 
			 2007 Rival 29/100 by Procktor 400 
			 2007 Sir William Chambers by F. Cotes 75,000 
			 2007 Shipping by J. T. Serres 7,000 
			 2008 Yellow Square Plus Quarter Blue 30/72 by W. Scott 3,000 
			 2008 Mudbanks by J. Trevelyan 500 
			 2008 Calypso 36/50 by J. Trevelyan 500 
			 2008 Breeze I 40/50 by J. Brunsdon 50

Leisure: Birmingham

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding his Department has provided for  (a) public libraries,  (b) museums,  (c) galleries,  (d) arts development and support,  (e) open spaces,  (f) sport and leisure facilities,  (g) school sport and  (h) other cultural services in Birmingham in each year since 1997.

Ben Bradshaw: Information on funding levels in Birmingham for  (a) public libraries,  (b) museums,  (c) galleries,  (e) open spaces,  (f) sport and leisure facilities, and  (h) other cultural services is not held centrally.
	I am able to provide details of funding in Birmingham for:
	 (d) Arts  development and support
	The following table details funding provided under the Grants for the Arts programme in the Birmingham local authority area since the programme was introduced in 2003:
	
		
			  Amount of grants for the arts funding provided to organisations based in the Birmingham local authority area 
			   £ 
			 2003-04 2,306,449 
			 2004-05 3,464,364 
			 2005-06 3,313,558 
			 2006-07 4,627,704 
			 2007-08 2,457,633 
			 2008-09 2,238,845 
			 Total 18,408,553 
		
	
	and
	 (g) School sport
	Every community in England will benefit from investment into delivery of the five hour offer, which is targeted through our national network of 450 school sport partnerships and 49 county sport partnerships. Exchequer funding for school sport partnerships in Birmingham began in 2004 and is continuing through the PE and Sport Strategy for Young People, (PESSYP), jointly funded by my Department and the Department for Children, Schools and Families.
	Funding provided for school sport partnerships in Birmingham in each year since 2004 is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Funding for school sports partnerships in Birmingham 
			   £ 
			 2004 1,829,386 
			 2005 2,306,047 
			 2006 2,627,371 
			 2007 2,364,633 
			 2008 2,847,453 
			 2009 2,914,155 
			 Total 14,889,045 
		
	
	Funding provided for sports colleges in Birmingham in each year since the first sports college was established is shown in the following table:
	
		
			  Funding for sports colleges in Birmingham 
			   £ 
			 2000-01 471,580 
			 2001-02 766,522 
			 2002-03 734,788 
			 2003-04 796,354 
			 2004-05 1,147,896 
			 2005-06 1,231,120 
			 2006-07 1,291,855 
			 2007-08 1,476,157 
			 2008-09 1,430,315 
			 2009-10 1,462,089 
			 Total 10,808,676 
		
	
	Birmingham county sport partnership has received PESSYP funding via the Sport Unlimited, Leadership and Volunteering and Recruit into Coaching programmes. The key investments are outlined in the following table:
	
		
			  Programme  Year  Funding (£) 
			 Sport Unlimited 2008-09 214,450 
			  2009-10 271,938 
			  2010-11 333,296 
			  Total 819,684 
			
			 Leadership and Volunteering 2008-09 22,000 
			  2009-10 22,000 
			  2010-11 22,000 
			  Total 66,000 
			
			 Recruit into Coaching 2009-10 8,786 
			  2010-11 12,500 
			  Total 20,286

Museums and Galleries: Overseas Visitors

Peter Ainsworth: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  whether he has made an estimate of the  (a) total financial contribution made by foreign national visitors to national museums and galleries in each year since 1997 and  (b) proportion of the turnover of those museums attributable to such contributions in each of those years; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of foreign nationals who have visited national museums and galleries in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The number of overseas visits reported by 17 of the national museums and galleries since 1998 are in the table. This is an agreed museum performance indicator.
	
		
			  Overseas visitors 
			  Financial year  Number 
			 1998-99 6,053,600 
			 1999-2000 6,044,299 
			 2000-01 9,348,709 
			 2001-02 9,139,763 
			 2002-03 9,589,987 
			 2003-04 11,805,327 
			 2004-05 10,882,420 
			 2005-06 10,912,808 
			 2006-07 14,256,408 
			 2007-08 15,179,212 
			 2008-09 13,907,317 
		
	
	The Department does not hold the data for 1997.
	The financial contributions and proportion of turnover to national museums and galleries by overseas visitors is not collected centrally.

National Lottery

William Cash: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if he will make it his policy to refuse consent to Camelot to offer a facility to make cash payments for utilities and other services through National Lottery terminals.

Gerry Sutcliffe: It has not proved possible to respond to the hon. Member in the time available before Prorogation.

Royal Parks Agency: Finance

Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 17 March 2009,  Official Report, column 997W, Royal Parks Agency: finance, what revenue has been raised by the Royal Parks Agency in each Royal Park from  (a) car park charges,  (b) fixed penalty notices,  (c) other fines and  (d) other revenues in (i) 2008 and (ii) 2009.

Margaret Hodge: Revenue raised from parking charges, excess charge notices and other revenue during the 2008-09 financial year has been provided by The Royal Parks (TRP) in the following table:
	
		
			  £000 
			  Royal Park  Car parking  Excess charge notices( 1)  Other revenue( 2) 
			 Hyde Park 346 41 3,290 
			 St. James's Park(3) n/a n/a 1,251 
			 Kensington Gardens(3) n/a n/a 256 
			 The Regent's Park 815 70 1,564 
			 Greenwich Park 240 34 293 
			 Richmond Park n/a n/a 1,045 
			 Bushy Park n/a n/a 188 
			 Total 1,401 145 7,887 
			 (1) The excess charge figure is also included in the car parking figure (2) These figures exclude grants from agency-wide projects, which are managed centrally. (3) Parking charges are not applicable at these parks because there is no public parking. 
		
	
	There is no charge at present for parking in Richmond or Bushy Parks. TRP does not receive revenue from fixed penalty notices or other fines, but receives revenue from catering and other concessions, from fees for events, permits and licences and from rents. The excess charge notices figure is included in the figures for car parking.

Television: Scotland

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what consultation was undertaken by his Department on the transfer of the Scottish Borders television region to the Scotland pilot scheme; when the transfer will take place; what  (a) technical and  (b) regulatory process will be required to effect the transfer; and if he will make a statement.

Ben Bradshaw: As part of the announcement of the procurement process for the independently funded news consortia (IFNC) pilots the Government said they wanted to look at the option for a news service for the whole of Scotland subject to costs and technical feasibility.
	The IFNC proposition is about an enhanced local news service that is relevant for audiences. The option of transferring the Scottish borders regional news service remains under review. No decisions have yet been made about whether or not a transfer will take place or the timing. If a decision is taken to transfer the news provision, then any necessary technical and regulatory processes will be addressed.

Tourism: Essex

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what steps he is taking to promote tourism in South East Essex; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information requested regarding the promotion of tourism in South East Essex is not held centrally. Responsibility for tourism in the regions was taken over by the regional development agencies (RDAs) in 2003.
	I have therefore asked the chief executive of the East of England Development Agency to write to the hon. Member directly. Copies of the response will be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
	In 2009-10, DCMS contributed £3.4 million to the RDA single budget, in respect of tourism support in the regions. This money is not actually ring-fenced for tourism, but is intended to support the broader tourism promotion investment of the RDAs, which totalled £60 million in 2009-10.
	The overall level of public sector investment in tourism from local, regional and national sources is likely to significantly exceed £2 billion in the current spending review period-2008-09 to 2010-11 (including resources made available for skills development).
	In partnership with the industry and the wider public sector, the DCMS has a clear and coherent policy framework for industry growth. This includes branding and marketing; skills development; driving up product quality through accommodation grading schemes; and promoting sustainability and accessibility.
	In addition a number of other DCMS programmes contribute to tourism. DCMS sponsors Sea Change, which has allocated £38 million to 32 seaside resorts, to support projects for cultural regeneration and the visitor economy. The Renaissance in the Regions programme is a ground-breaking initiative to transform England's regional museums. Renaissance has seen an investment of £242.8 million from 2002-09 and it is anticipated that nearly £300 million will have been invested by March 2011.
	 Letter from Deborah Cadman, dated 8 April 2010:
	As requested by the DCMS, I write in response your Parliamentary Question about support for tourism in South East Essex.
	Support for tourism promotion in South East Essex is provided in close working partnership by Southend Borough Council, Essex County Council, and East of England Tourism (EET), which is funded by EEDA.
	 Essex County Council support includes:
	featuring tourism businesses in guides, on their website, and in their tourism market campaigns
	with EET, keeping local authorities informed about tourism issues and advising them on specific opportunities, for example hotel development
	taking advantage of the Olympics to promote South East Essex, which will host the mountain biking in 2012 at Hadleigh Castle
	representing South East Essex in its public relations work, including at trade shows
	 Southend Council support includes:
	investing an additional £100,000 last year in its events programme, which aims to help extend the tourism season and promote Southend as a short-break destination as well as a day visitor destination
	redeveloping its website last year and developing a new brand for Southend to help challenge perceptions and open up new markets
	East of England Tourism (EET) provides regional and national level marketing for South East Essex through its marketing campaigns, successful website, and other services for tourism businesses.
	For example, last year Southend featured in the following EET initiatives:
	The Lets Go! promotion with National Express
	a marketing campaign with C2C
	Stansted guides and special offers
	a double-page spread in The Independent
	an Evening Standard press campaign
	In addition, EEDA itself has directly invested in new cultural facilities in South East Essex, including Metal in Southend, and the Royal Opera House Production Park in Thurrock. We are also leading the region's effort to take advantage of the Olympics opportunity, which we estimate could deliver a £450 million return for tourism for the region as a whole, with South East Essex especially well-placed to benefit.
	Should you wish to know more about our work supporting tourism in South East Essex please do no hesitate to contact us.